The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arraigned an alleged drug kingpin, 63-year-old Anochili Innocent, alongside three Mexican nationals and six other Nigerians before the Federal High Court in Lagos over the alleged operation of a large-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory in Ogun State.
The defendants appeared before Justice Musa Kakaki on Friday on an 11-count charge bordering on conspiracy, unlawful production of illicit drugs, possession of precursor chemicals, and operating a drug trafficking organisation.
According to the NDLEA, the suspects were arrested during coordinated operations in Ogun and Lagos states between May 16 and 18, 2026.
The agency said the laboratory, concealed deep inside a forest in Mowe, Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State, allegedly produced 2,419.48 kilograms of methamphetamine valued at over N480 billion in the international market.
Those arraigned include Mexican nationals Juan Carlos Meza Torrero, Nemecio Martinez Felix and Jesus López Valles, as well as Nwankwo Sunday Christian, Egwuonwu Uchenna Victor, Igwe Abuchi Remijus, Ifeanyichukwu Chibuike Joshua, Omonughwa Kingsley Orike and Nwobum Emeka.
The NDLEA said operatives arrested seven suspects, including the three Mexicans, at the forest laboratory, while Anochili was apprehended at his residence in Lakowe, Lekki, Lagos. Follow-up operations led to the arrest of two other alleged members of the syndicate at separate properties in Lekki.
The agency alleged that the defendants conspired between February and May 16, 2026, to establish and operate the clandestine laboratory in violation of the NDLEA Act.
They were also accused of financing and managing a drug trafficking network, transporting precursor chemicals to the laboratory, and unlawfully producing and possessing methamphetamine.
Investigators said they recovered large quantities of precursor chemicals at the site, including 358 kilograms of toluene, 1,834 kilograms of hydrochloric acid, 22.5 kilograms of acetone, as well as phenyl-2-propane (P2P) and phenyl acetic acid.
Anochili, described by the agency as the owner of the land where the laboratory was located, was separately charged with permitting his property to be used for the production of illicit drugs.
All ten defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges although the prosecution indicated its readiness to begin trial, the defence requested additional time after objecting to the commencement of proceedings. Justice Kakaki subsequently ordered that the defendants be remanded in the Lagos Correctional Centre and adjourned the case to July 16 and July 22, 2026, for trial and hearing of their bail applications.
Commenting on the development, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the case as one of the most significant busts of an industrial-scale drug production operation in Nigeria.
Marwa said the involvement of Mexican nationals highlighted the growing efforts by international drug cartels to establish production bases in Nigeria for export, adding that the agency remained committed to dismantling such networks and urged the public to continue providing intelligence to support its operations.