The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled a large-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory hidden in a forest at Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, arresting five suspects, including a Mexican methamphetamine expert.
NDLEA Chairman, retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, represented by the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in Abuja on Wednesday.
Marwa said the June 17 operation targeted a sophisticated Nigerian-Mexican drug cartel operating an industrial-scale meth production facility deep in the forest. The suspects arrested included the 56-year-old Mexican specialist and four Nigerian collaborators.
According to him, forensic experts who examined the site recovered large quantities of precursor chemicals, industrial catalysts, processing equipment, and methamphetamine crystals that tested positive during field analysis.
He described the discovery as another major breakthrough in the agency’s fight against illicit drug production, coming barely four weeks after a similar laboratory was uncovered in Ogun State.
Marwa warned drug cartels against using Nigeria as a base for illegal drug manufacturing, stressing that the NDLEA would continue to track and dismantle such operations across the country.
He commended officers of the Oyo State Command for their professionalism and thanked members of the public for providing credible intelligence that aided the operation.
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