Four men have pleaded guilty at the Special Criminal Court to having 2.2 tonnes of cocaine on board a Panamanian-registered cargo ship after the largest such seizure in Irish history.
They were due to go on trial having earlier this week failed in a bid to have the charges against them dismissed.
The four men - Ukrainians Mykhailo Gavryk, 32, and Vitaliy Vlasoi, 32; Iranian Soheil Jelveh, 51, and Dutch national 49-year-old Cumali Ozgen - appeared before the court today where they were each arraigned on one of three charges against them.
They admitted that, between 24 and 26 September 24 2023, at locations outside the State, on the MV Matthew, they had cocaine for sale or supply.
The 2.25 tonnes of the drug seized from the bulk carrier has an estimated value of more than €157m.
The ship was boarded in an operation by the Army Rangers, a specialist wing of the Defence Forces, in September 2023.
The men had applied to the non-jury Special Criminal Court on 13 January to have the charges against them dismissed.
Senior Counsel for the State Seán Guerin said the guilty pleas were acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The court remanded the men in custody until 24 February, when their cases are listed for mention with a view to fixing a sentence date for next term.
Two other defendants - Iranian Saeid Hassani, 39, and 31-year-old Filipino Harold Estoesta - were remanded in custody until Monday when they will go on trial.
A seventh man, Ukrainian national Vitaliy Lapa, 62, with an address at Rudenka, Repina Str in Berdyansk, was previously arraigned on one of the two charges against him.
Lapa pleaded guilty to attempting to possess cocaine for sale or supply between 21 and 25 September 2023.
Lapa was also facing a charge that, between 15 July and 23 September 2023, within the State, with knowledge of the existence of a criminal organisation, that he participated in, or contributed to, activity intending to, or being reckless as to whether such participation or contribution could facilitate the commission of a serious offence by that criminal organisation or any of its members.
Lapa was the only one of the accused men who did not make an application under the Criminal Procedure Act to have his case dismissed.
UK national Jamie Harbron,31, also pleaded guilty to an offence arising from the seizure. He will appear before the court later this year for a sentencing hearing.
Harbron, of South Avenue, Billingham in England, admitted having cocaine in his possession for sale or supply.
