Nigeria’s anti-narcotics agency, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said it has dismantled a sophisticated Nigerian-Mexican methamphetamine production syndicate following a series of coordinated raids that uncovered what authorities described as the largest clandestine drug laboratory ever found in the country.
Operations in southwestern Nigeria led to the arrest of ten suspects, including three Mexican nationals accused of providing technical expertise.
The operation, led by the agency, targeted a remote forest laboratory in Ogun State and properties linked to the alleged cartel leader in Lagos, NDLEA Chairman Mohamed Buba Marwa said during a media briefing in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
Marwa said the raids, conducted by the agency’s Special Operations Unit over 48 hours, dismantled a “industrial-scale” methamphetamine manufacturing network run by Nigerian traffickers and Mexican collaborators.
Investigators said the main laboratory, concealed within the Abidagba forest in Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State, was disguised as a farm. NDLEA operatives arrested seven suspects at the site, comprising three Mexican nationals identified as Martinez Felix Nemecto, Jesus López Valles, and Torrero Juan Carlos, and four Nigerian collaborators.
Meanwhile, another tactical team arrested alleged cartel leader Anochili Innocent at his home in the Lekki area of Lagos. Searches of the property turned up the passports and mobile phones of the Mexican suspects, which authorities said directly linked him to the recruitment and management of the foreign operatives, investigators said.
Further raids on properties in Lagos on May 18 resulted in the arrest of two more suspects, bringing the number of detainees to ten, including the alleged kingpin, Mexican nationals and six Nigerian collaborators now in NDLEA custody.
Officers seized 2,419.48 kilograms of chemical materials, including crystallised and liquid methamphetamine, precursor chemicals and industrial solvents, the agency said. The NDLEA said the haul had a street value of about $362.9 million or over 480 billion naira globally.
“To put this into perspective, the 2,419.48 kilograms of finished and liquid methamphetamine seized represents millions of street doses that would have flooded our local communities and international markets, causing untold destruction, psychosis and violence,” Marwa said.
NDLEA called the seizure one of the biggest anti-drug operations in West Africa, highlighting increasing concerns of international law enforcement agencies over global narcotics syndicates moving methamphetamine production to regions with large rural areas and expanding criminal networks.
The latest operation comes after another multinational crackdown that involved the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and European law enforcement agencies, targeting a separate Nigerian-led trafficking network allegedly headed by Simon Amadi.
Marwa cautioned that the NDLEA would escalate operations against drug syndicates operating in Nigeria and alleged that international cartels were trying to broaden their manufacturing base in the region.
“We are acutely aware of the evolving tactics of these cartels, and the disturbing trend of importing South American cartel specialists to set up production factories in our rural communities,” he stated.
“No matter how deep you hide in the bush and how secured your gated estate is, the NDLEA will track you down, disrupt your networks and seize your ill-gotten wealth,” he added.
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