By Jane Okafor, Abuja
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a multi-billion-naira clandestine methamphetamine laboratory hidden inside a forest in Oyo State and arrested five suspects, including a Mexican national allegedly recruited to provide technical expertise for the illegal operation.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), disclosed this on Wednesday during a press briefing in Abuja, describing the discovery as a major breakthrough in the agency’s sustained crackdown on drug trafficking and production syndicates.
Represented by the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, Marwa said the industrial-scale laboratory, located deep inside the forest of Tapa Village in Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, was raided on June 17 following credible intelligence.
According to him, tactical operatives of the NDLEA stormed the heavily fortified facility and dismantled what he described as a sophisticated transnational drug production syndicate.
“Today, we are proud to announce that our operatives, acting on credible intelligence, have struck another decisive blow against a major cartel operating within our borders,” Marwa said.
“This was not a crude set-up. It was a highly organised and industrial-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory concealed deep inside the forest.”
The NDLEA boss identified the suspects arrested during the operation as a 56-year-old Mexican methamphetamine specialist, Jose Villa Ochoa, and four Nigerians: Maxwell Nevoh, 30; Olatunji Yusuf, 37; Bankole Owolabi, 45; and Ganiu Monsiu, 43.
He said the arrest of the foreign suspect highlighted the international dimension of the illicit drug trade and the growing involvement of foreign cartels in Nigeria’s drug ecosystem.
“The arrest of a foreign cartel specialist on Nigerian soil underscores the transnational nature of this threat, but more importantly, it demonstrates the agency’s intelligence and operational capacity to track and dismantle such networks,” he stated.
Marwa disclosed that forensic experts deployed to the site uncovered what he described as a “factory-level production line” equipped with large quantities of precursor chemicals, industrial catalysts and heavy-duty processing equipment used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.
Among the materials recovered were drums containing phenyl-2-propanone, phenylacetic acid, crystalline substances suspected to be methamphetamine, caustic soda, sulphuric acid and several other chemical compounds.
The agency also recovered a reactor pot, mounted distillation units, fabricated mixers and condensers, as well as vegetable dehydrator machines allegedly used for rapid crystal drying.
According to Marwa, immediate field tests conducted by NDLEA forensic experts confirmed the presence of methamphetamine in samples recovered from the laboratory.
“Every single gramme of the substance recovered has been safely evacuated, documented and preserved for evidential purposes,” he added.
The NDLEA chairman described the operation as another major setback for drug syndicates attempting to establish production hubs in the South-West region.
“This is yet another multi-billion-naira cache of illicit substances and production equipment that would have pushed millions of doses of synthetic drugs into our communities and beyond, but for the vigilance of our officers,” he said.
Marwa noted that the latest discovery came barely four weeks after the agency dismantled another large methamphetamine laboratory concealed in a forest in the Ijebu area of Ogun State.
He said the proximity of both discoveries suggested a desperate attempt by drug barons to turn the South-West into a major synthetic drug manufacturing base.
“They thought hiding in dense forests would shield them from the long arm of the law. They were wrong,” he declared.
Marwa warned both local and international drug traffickers against using Nigeria as a base for illicit drug production and trafficking.
“Let it be known that Nigeria will never be a safe haven for drug cartels. We will find you in the cities, track you into the forests and dismantle your infrastructure of death,” he warned.
He commended officers of the Oyo State Command involved in the operation for their professionalism, courage and dedication, while also appreciating members of the public for providing credible intelligence that aided the raid.
The latest operation came barely a month after NDLEA operatives uncovered another industrial-scale methamphetamine production facility hidden in a forest in Ogun State.
That operation led to the seizure of more than 2.4 tonnes of methamphetamine and precursor chemicals, while three Mexican nationals and four Nigerians were arrested.
