NDLEA Arrests Mexican Suspect, Dismantles Meth Lab In Ebonyi

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a Mexican national allegedly linked to a transnational methamphetamine network and dismantled another clandestine laboratory in Ebonyi State.

The suspect, identified as 56-year-old Mexican methamphetamine expert Jose Villa Ochoa, was arrested at the Lagos airport while allegedly attempting to leave Nigeria.

The NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), disclosed this on Tuesday in Lagos while briefing journalists on recent operations by the agency.

Marwa, who was represented by the NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the arrest followed months of investigations into a wider network allegedly involved in the establishment of clandestine drug laboratories in different parts of the country.

He recalled that NDLEA operatives had on May 16, 2026, arrested three Mexican nationals and seven Nigerian collaborators at a forest location in Ogun State.

According to him, another Mexican national and four Nigerian collaborators were arrested on June 17 at a clandestine methamphetamine laboratory in a forested area of Tapa village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State.

Marwa said investigations into the Oyo operation revealed that Ochoa, who was arrested at the laboratory, had allegedly been recruited into Nigeria by another Mexican national, Arturo Carrera Loaiza.

He said international partners subsequently assisted investigators in obtaining Loaiza’s photograph, which Ochoa allegedly identified as that of the man who recruited him and brought him into the country.

The NDLEA chairman said operatives later arrested Loaiza at the Lagos airport on August 19 as he was allegedly preparing to leave Nigeria.

Although Loaiza reportedly denied involvement in methamphetamine production and claimed that a Nigerian identified only as Henry had invited him to Nigeria for a restaurant business, investigators allegedly recovered photographs showing him wearing a blue laboratory coat at a location containing equipment consistent with methamphetamine production.

Marwa said analysis of location data from the photographs led investigators to a property under construction at Isiata Ugoni Okposi in Ebonyi State.

A raid conducted at the property on August 30, which the agency linked to John Samuel Ivo Okike, reportedly uncovered a suspicious temporary structure near a septic tank, strong chemical odours and CCTV footage allegedly showing Loaiza and Okike at the location.

The footage, according to the NDLEA, also showed chemicals and laboratory equipment being moved from the property on August 21.

Further intelligence subsequently led operatives to an isolated house in a neighbouring community, where they recovered chemicals, equipment and other materials allegedly connected with methamphetamine production.

The recovered items included acetone, toluene, hydrochloric acid, dehydrators, condensers, reaction equipment and other laboratory paraphernalia.

Marwa said the combination of CCTV footage, forensic evidence, recovered materials and eyewitness accounts had strengthened the agency’s investigation into the suspected drug network.

He warned that Nigeria would not be allowed to become a safe haven for transnational drug cartels seeking to establish clandestine laboratories in forests and rural communities.

The NDLEA boss commended the officers involved in the Ogun, Oyo and Ebonyi operations, assuring that the agency would continue its investigation into the network, including its alleged financiers and local collaborators.

He also urged residents to report suspicious activities, unusual chemical odours and unfamiliar structures to the agency through its toll-free line, 080010203040, or by email at info@ndlea.gov.ng.