Drug smugglers outnumber crimefighters on Atlantic’s ‘cocaine superhighway’

Last year, around 100 vessels suspected of drug trafficking evaded interception in the Atlantic, despite the Maritime Analysis Operations Centre’s monitoring efforts. A notable raid on the MV Matthew resulted in the seizure of over 2.2 tonnes of cocaine, marking Ireland’s largest drug bust, with eight crew members convicted and jailed for a total of 129 years.