NDLEA Arrests Mexican Meth Kingpin at Lagos Airport, Dismantles Ebonyi Lab
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a Mexican methamphetamine kingpin, Arturo Carrera Loaiza, as he attempted to flee Nigeria through Lagos airport. The agency also dismantled an industrial-scale methamphetamine laboratory in Ebonyi State.In a statement released on Tuesday, NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy Femi Babafemi said the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), disclosed the development while briefing journalists in Lagos.Marwa explained that the operation followed months of investigation into a transnational drug network linked to clandestine laboratories previously uncovered in Ogun and Oyo states.On May 16, 2026, NDLEA operatives arrested three Mexican nationals and seven Nigerian collaborators at a forest hideout in Ogun State. On June 17, another Mexican national, 56-year-old Jose Villa Ochoa, and four Nigerians were arrested at a methamphetamine laboratory hidden in a forested area of Tapa village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State.Investigations into the Oyo operation established that Ochoa had been recruited into Nigeria by Loaiza. With the help of international partners, investigators obtained a photograph of Loaiza, which Ochoa positively identified as his recruiter.Intelligence further showed that Loaiza entered Nigeria on June 10, 2026, alongside another Mexican national, Jose Ceballos Perez. He was tracked and arrested on August 19, 2026, while trying to leave the country through the Lagos airport.During interrogation, Loaiza claimed he had been invited to Nigeria by a contact identified only as “Henry” for a restaurant business and denied any knowledge of methamphetamine production or involvement with the Tapa village laboratory.However, investigators recovered images of Loaiza wearing a blue laboratory coat and standing among equipment consistent with methamphetamine production. Analysis of the location metadata in the images led them to a property under construction at Isiata Ugoni Okposi in Ebonyi State.On August 30, 2026, operatives raided the property, which is linked to one John Samuel Ivo Okike. Interviews with the site engineer and caretaker revealed a suspicious temporary structure built over the septic tank area at the rear of the building, along with persistent strong chemical odours.A recovered CCTV memory card showed a foreign national matching Loaiza’s description wearing a blue laboratory coat, as well as repeated appearances by Okike. Footage from about 9:00 p.m. on August 21 captured the movement of chemicals and laboratory equipment from the property, with Okike directing the operation.Further intelligence led operatives to an isolated house in a neighbouring community where the materials had been relocated under the custody of one Nwanja Obasi. A raid there recovered substantial quantities of methamphetamine-related chemicals, laboratory equipment and paraphernalia.Items seized included 442.8kg of acetone, 37.1kg of toluene, 20kg of an acetone/bromobenzene mixture, 1.7kg of ethanol, 5.1kg of chloride salt, 31.5kg of hydrochloric acid, 200kg of P2B and 1kg of tartaric acid. Also recovered were a dehydrator containing a white cloth sieve with loose methamphetamine, three empty dehydrators, condensing units, a condenser, a fabricated reaction pot, pumps, weighing scales, mixers, drums, gas burners, gloves and a blue laboratory coat.Marwa said the evidence, including CCTV footage, forensic findings and eyewitness accounts, had strengthened the case against those linked to the network. He warned that Nigeria would not become a safe haven for international drug cartels seeking to relocate their operations to the country’s forests and rural communities.He commended the Special Operations Unit, Strike Force, Forensics, and the Ogun, Oyo and Ebonyi State Commands for their roles in the operations, and vowed that the agency would continue pursuing every lead until the full network, its financiers and local enablers are brought to justice.
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