NDLEA Busts Multi-Billion Naira Meth Lab in Oyo Forest

…. Arrests Mexican Drug Expert, Four Nigerians

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered and dismantled a heavily fortified, industrial-scale methamphetamine laboratory hidden deep inside a forest in Oyo State, arresting a Mexican national and four Nigerians allegedly involved in the illicit operation.

The clandestine drug factory, located in Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, was described by the agency as a sophisticated transnational operation capable of producing large quantities of methamphetamine for distribution within Nigeria and international markets.

The latest breakthrough comes barely four weeks after NDLEA dismantled another major methamphetamine laboratory concealed in a forest in neighbouring Ogun State, heightening concerns over attempts by drug cartels to establish the South-West region as a hub for synthetic drug production.

Speaking at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), represented by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the operation dealt a significant blow to an international drug trafficking syndicate.

According to Marwa, NDLEA tactical operatives stormed the forest hideout on June 17 and arrested five suspects, including a 56-year-old Mexican national, Jose Villa Ochoa, believed to have been recruited to provide technical expertise for large-scale methamphetamine production.

The other suspects arrested were Maxwell Uche Nevoh, 30; Olatunji Yusuf, 37; Bankole Akeem Owolabi, 45; and Ganiu Monsiu, 43.

Marwa noted that the arrest of a foreign methamphetamine specialist in Nigeria underscores the increasingly transnational nature of synthetic drug production and trafficking, while also reflecting the agency’s growing intelligence-gathering and operational capabilities.

Following the raid, NDLEA forensic and chemical monitoring experts conducted an extensive examination of the facility, uncovering what officials described as a factory-scale production line stocked with large quantities of precursor chemicals and industrial equipment.

Among the recovered materials were substantial quantities of Phenyl-2-propanone (P2P), a highly controlled precursor used in methamphetamine production, drums of phenylacetic acid, crystalline substances undergoing processing, and containers of dark liquids at various stages of synthesis.

The agency also recovered 101 bags of caustic soda, multiple containers of sulphuric acid, tartaric acid, thioglycolic acid and ethyl phenylacetate, as well as dozens of cartons of aluminium foil and other industrial chemicals.

Investigators further discovered sophisticated processing equipment, including a reactor pot, mounted distillation units, fabricated mixers and condensers, and industrial dehydrator machines used in drying methamphetamine crystals.

Field tests conducted by NDLEA forensic experts confirmed that crystal samples recovered from the laboratory tested positive for methamphetamine, while other substances tested positive for precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of the illicit drug.

Marwa said all exhibits had been evacuated, documented and preserved as evidence for prosecution.

He described the operation as another multi-billion-naira investment by drug cartels aimed at flooding Nigerian communities and international markets with synthetic narcotics.

The NDLEA chairman warned that the latest discovery, coming shortly after a similar bust in Ogun State, points to a deliberate effort by criminal networks to turn the South-West into a manufacturing base for synthetic drugs.

He reiterated the agency’s determination to dismantle drug 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. We will find you in the cities, we will track you into the forests, and we will dismantle your infrastructure of death,” he said.

Marwa commended officers of the NDLEA Oyo State Command for their professionalism and bravery during the operation and urged members of the public to continue providing credible intelligence to support the fight against illicit drug trafficking.