The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, the NDLEA, has uncovered and dismantled an industrial scale methamphetamine laboratory in Oyo State. According to the agency, the clandestine facility had been hidden deep inside a forest, away from public view, where it was used for the production of the illicit drug.
The laboratory was located in the Ibarapa North local government area of Oyo State. The NDLEA described the site as an industrial scale operation, indicating that the facility was set up for the large scale production of methamphetamine rather than small quantities.
The agency said five suspects were arrested during the operation that led to the discovery and dismantling of the laboratory. The arrests were made as operatives moved in on the hidden facility in the course of the anti narcotics operation.
Among those arrested is a 56-year-old Mexican national identified as Jose Villa Ochoa. According to the NDLEA, the foreign suspect was allegedly brought into Nigeria specifically to provide technical expertise for the large scale production of methamphetamine at the facility.
In the course of the operation, the agency said large quantities of chemicals and precursor substances were recovered from the laboratory. These materials are associated with the production process of methamphetamine at the dismantled site.
The development was announced at a press briefing in Abuja by the NDLEA director of media and advocacy, Femi Babafemi. According to the agency, the discovery comes about four weeks after another major methamphetamine laboratory was uncovered, pointing to its continued efforts against large scale drug production.