NDLEA Uncovers Multi-Billion-Naira Meth Lab, Arrests Mexican, Four Nigerians

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a multi-billion-naira methamphetamine production facility hidden in a forest in Oyo State and arrested five suspects, including a Mexican national allegedly recruited to provide technical expertise for the operation.

The agency described the discovery as a significant breakthrough in its efforts to dismantle drug trafficking and manufacturing networks operating across the country.

Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (retd.), said the clandestine laboratory was discovered in Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, following intelligence-driven operations carried out by the agency.

Represented by the NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, Marwa said operatives stormed the facility on June 17 and uncovered what he described as a highly organised industrial-scale drug production centre concealed deep inside a forest.

“Today, we are proud to announce that our operatives, acting on credible intelligence, have struck another decisive blow against a major drug cartel,” he said.

“Tactical operatives of the NDLEA stormed a highly fortified industrial-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory operating deep within the forest of Tapa Village. This was not a rudimentary set-up but a sophisticated transnational syndicate.”

The suspects arrested during the operation were identified as 56-year-old Mexican national, Jose Villa Ochoa, and four Nigerians — Maxwell Nevoh, 30; Olatunji Yusuf, 37; Bankole Owolabi, 45; and Ganiu Monsiu, 43.

Marwa said the arrest of the foreign suspect highlighted the international dimension of the illicit drug trade and demonstrated the agency’s capacity to track and dismantle transnational criminal networks.

According to him, forensic experts who examined the facility after the raid discovered a large stockpile of chemicals and equipment used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.

Among the recovered materials were drums containing phenylacetic acid and phenyl-2-propanone, substances commonly used in meth production, as well as crystalline substances suspected to be methamphetamine.

The agency also recovered more than 100 bags of caustic soda, several containers of sulphuric acid, tartaric acid, thioglycolic acid and ethyl phenylacetate, in addition to cartons of aluminium foil and other production materials.

Investigators further discovered industrial processing equipment, including a reactor pot, distillation units, mixers, condensers and dehydrator machines believed to have been used in the manufacturing process.

Marwa disclosed that field tests conducted on samples recovered from the laboratory confirmed the presence of methamphetamine.

“Samples of the finished crystals recovered yielded a definitive positive result for methamphetamine,” he said, adding that all exhibits had been documented and preserved as evidence for prosecution.

The NDLEA chairman said the operation prevented a substantial quantity of synthetic drugs from finding its way into communities within and outside Nigeria.

He noted that the latest seizure came barely four weeks after the agency dismantled another industrial-scale methamphetamine laboratory hidden in a forest in Ogun State, where several foreign and local suspects were arrested.

According to him, the repeated discoveries suggest an attempt by drug syndicates to establish major production bases in the South-West region.

“The proximity of this discovery to the Ogun State laboratory uncovered a few weeks ago reveals a desperate attempt by drug barons to establish a synthetic drug manufacturing hub in the South-West axis,” Marwa said.

“They thought hiding in dense forests would shield them from the long arm of the law. They were wrong.”

He warned local and international drug traffickers against using Nigeria as a base for illicit activities, stressing that the agency would continue to pursue criminal networks wherever they operate.

“Let the message go out clearly to all drug cartels, domestic and international, that Nigeria is not and will never be a safe haven for your illicit trade,” he said.

“We will find you in the cities, we will track you into the forests, and we will dismantle your infrastructure of death.”

Marwa commended officers of the Oyo State Command and other operatives involved in the raid for their professionalism and dedication, while also appreciating members of the public for providing intelligence that aided the operation.