scupper2 /ˈskəpər, ˈskəpər /

▸ verb [with object] chiefly British sink (a ship or its crew) deliberately.
▪ informal prevent from working or succeeding; thwart:
plans for a casino were scuppered by a public inquiry.
– ORIGIN late 19th century (as military slang in the sense ‘kill, especially in an ambush’): of unknown origin. The sense ‘sink’ dates from the 1970s.