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The only active ship in the Irish Navy did not join in the hunt for cocaine dropped by drug smugglers because it was too busy celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.
Last week, several divers – six Spaniards, two Dutchmen, one Serbian and one man from Northern Ireland – and four others were arrested in Ireland for alleged drug smuggling, the Telegraph reported.
Officers believe they were part of a major drug smuggling pipeline and that the suspects had stashed caches of electronically tagged cocaine underwater off the southwest coast of Ireland.
The drugs, South American cartel cocaine that was hidden in waterproof containers, however, had not been found at the time of the arrest.
Looking for some help in locating the submerged drug haul, Gardai made a formal request to the Irish Naval Service for assistance.
Unfortunately, according to the Telegraph, the only available Navy ship was already on its way to Dún Laoghaire to take part in the St Patrick’s Day celebrations.
So instead of assisting in helping to shut down a significant drug smuggling ring, the LÉ George Bernard Shaw was docked in the south Dublin town giving tours to the public with the crew participating in the town’s St Patrick’s parade.
Ireland currently has fewer ships available to patrol approximately 169,000 square miles than at any point since the 1970s, according to the Irish Times.
Cathal Berry, a former officer and the independent MP for Kildare, told the Irish Times it was “unacceptable” that there was only one Navy ship on duty.
“Ireland’s Atlantic coast is now ground zero for smuggling narcotics into Europe,” he said. “This is primarily due to the precarious state of the Irish navy. There is no substitute for hulls on the water providing a visible maritime presence to deter and disrupt smugglers.”
Perhaps, but St. Patrick’s Day only comes around one day a year.