NDLEA operatives
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled another industrial-scale methamphetamine laboratory and arrested a Mexican drug kingpin attempting to flee the country through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
The breakthrough was announced on Tuesday in a statement issued by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Mr. Femi Babafemi.
According to the statement, the operation is part of an ongoing crackdown exposing transnational drug cartels attempting to infiltrate Nigeria’s forests and rural communities. The operation stems from months of investigations into clandestine drug laboratories uncovered across the country this year, including major busts in Ogun State on May 16 and a forested hideout in Tapa village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, on June 17.
Unraveling the Cartel
Investigations by the agency’s Special Operations Unit (SOU) into the Oyo State bust revealed that the 56-year-old Mexican meth expert, Jose Ochoa, had been recruited into Nigeria by a senior Mexican kingpin, Arturo Loaiza.
Working with international partners, NDLEA investigators obtained Loaiza’s photograph, which led to his identification and eventual tracking. Intelligence showed Loaiza entered Nigeria on June 10 alongside another Mexican national, Jose Perez. On August 19, operatives apprehended Loaiza at the Lagos airport as he attempted to flee.
Although Loaiza denied any involvement in methamphetamine manufacturing during interrogation—claiming he was invited for a restaurant business venture by a Nigerian contact known only as “Henry”—forensic evidence told a different story. Investigators recovered images of Loaiza wearing a blue laboratory coat amidst meth-production equipment.
Metadata analysis of the images directed operatives to a property undergoing construction at Isiata Ugoni Okposi in Ebonyi State, linked to one John Okike.
Raids and Recoveries in Ebonyi
On August 30, NDLEA operatives raided the Ebonyi property after noticing suspicious structures over a septic tank and detecting strong chemical odours. A review of a recovered CCTV memory card proved decisive, capturing footage of Loaiza in his blue lab coat, Okike directing operations, and the late-night relocation of equipment and chemicals on August 21.
Following further intelligence, operatives traced the relocated materials to an isolated house in a neighboring community under the custody of Nwanja Obasi. A subsequent raid led to the recovery of a massive cache of chemicals, equipment, and paraphernalia, including:
Chemicals: 442.8 kg of Acetone, 37.1 kg of Toluene, 200 kg of P2B, 31.5 kg of Hydrochloric acid, 5.1 kg of Chloride Salt, 1.7 kg of Ethanol, 1 kg of Tartaric acid, and a 20 kg mixture of Acetone/Bromobenzene.
Equipment: A dehydrator containing a methamphetamine-embedded cloth sieve, three empty dehydrators, condensing units, a condenser head, a condenser, and a fabricated reaction pot.
Paraphernalia: An access pump, weighing scales, mixers, drums, gas burners, protective gloves, and a blue laboratory coat matching the one worn by Loaiza in the CCTV footage.
NDLEA’s Firm Stance
Brig.-Gen. Marwa commended the officers of the SOU Strike Force, Forensics, and the Oyo, Ogun, and Ebonyi State commands for their diligence and professionalism. He vowed that the agency would relentlessly pursue every lead until the entire network, including financiers and local enablers, is brought to justice.
“Let me be unequivocal, Nigeria will not be allowed to become a haven for transnational drug cartels seeking to relocate their laboratories from other jurisdictions into our forests and rural communities,” Marwa stated.
The agency has urged citizens, particularly those in rural and forested areas, to report suspicious activities, unusual chemical odours, or unfamiliar structures through its toll-free line (080010203040) or via email at info@ndlea.gov.ng.
