Photos: NDLEA Smashes Meth Lab In Oyo Forest, Arrests Mexican National And Four Nigerians

According to Ireporter Online, operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have uncovered and dismantled a large-scale clandestine methamphetamine production facility located in Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, in a major blow to a suspected Nigerian-Mexican drug cartel.

The operation, which was carried out on June 17, 2026, led to the arrest of five suspects, including a 56-year-old Mexican national identified as a methamphetamine production expert allegedly brought into the country to provide technical support for the illicit enterprise. The raid comes just weeks after a similar meth lab was uncovered by the agency in a forest area of Ijebu East, Ogun State.

Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), through the agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, described the discovery as evidence of an emerging attempt by drug syndicates to establish the South-West region as a hub for synthetic drug production.

Marwa stated that the facility was a highly sophisticated and industrial-scale operation rather than a makeshift setup, stressing that it was run by a well-coordinated transnational criminal network.

The arrested Mexican suspect was identified as Jose Villa Ochoa, while the four Nigerian suspects were named as Maxwell Uche Nevoh (30), Olatunji Yusuf (37), Bankole Akeem Owolabi (45), and Ganiu Monsiu (43).

He further disclosed that a forensic team from the NDLEA’s Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring visited the site on June 18 to conduct detailed examinations, describing the location as a “factory-level production line of dangerous substances.”

Recovered items from the facility included large quantities of precursor chemicals such as Phenyl-2-propanone, Phenylacetic acid, caustic soda, sulphuric acid, tartaric acid, thioglycolic acid, ethyl phenylacetate, and multiple cartons of aluminium foil. Also found were drums containing crystalline substances and dark liquids in various stages of chemical synthesis.

Industrial equipment recovered at the site included reactor pots, distillation units, fabricated mixers, condensers, and vegetable dehydrator machines allegedly used in processing the drug crystals. Forensic analysis reportedly confirmed that samples taken from the site tested positive for methamphetamine.

Marwa noted that all exhibits had been secured and preserved for prosecution, adding that the seizure represents a multibillion-naira drug production network capable of flooding communities with dangerous synthetic substances if not intercepted.

He issued a stern warning to drug cartels operating within and outside Nigeria, declaring that the country would not be allowed to become a safe haven for illicit drug manufacturing or trafficking.

Marwa also commended NDLEA operatives in Oyo State for their professionalism during the operation and appreciated members of the public for providing actionable intelligence that aided the successful raid.