The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has dismantled another industrial-scale methamphetamine laboratory and arrested a Mexican national suspected of being a key figure in a transnational drug network operating in Nigeria.
The NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retired), disclosed this on Tuesday in Lagos while briefing journalists on the agency’s latest operations.
Marwa, represented by the Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the breakthrough followed months of intelligence gathering and investigation into clandestine drug laboratories uncovered in Ogun, Oyo and Ebonyi states.
He said investigations into the arrest of 56-year-old Mexican methamphetamine expert, Jose Villa Ochoa, at a forest laboratory in Oyo State, led operatives to his alleged recruiter, Arturo Carrera Loaiza.
According to the agency, Loaiza entered Nigeria on June 10, 2026, and was arrested on August 19 while attempting to leave the country through the Lagos airport.
Further investigation led NDLEA operatives to a property under construction in Isiata Ugoni Okposi, Ebonyi State, where CCTV footage allegedly linked Loaiza and a Nigerian associate, John Samuel Ivo Okike, to the site.
The agency said laboratory equipment and chemicals were later moved from the property to an isolated house in a neighbouring community.
A subsequent raid reportedly led to the recovery of large quantities of chemicals and equipment used in methamphetamine production, including 442.8 kilogrammes of acetone, 37.1 kilogrammes of toluene, 31.5 kilogrammes of hydrochloric acid, 200 kilogrammes of P2B and other laboratory materials.
Marwa warned that Nigeria would not become a safe haven for international drug cartels seeking to establish laboratories in the country.
He commended personnel of the NDLEA Special Operations Unit, Strike Force, Forensics and the Ogun, Oyo and Ebonyi State Commands for their efforts.
The agency said investigations would continue until the alleged financiers and local collaborators connected to the network are brought to justice.
NDLEA also urged residents of rural and forest communities to report suspicious activities, unusual chemical odours and unfamiliar structures to the agency.