The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded another major breakthrough in its fight against transnational drug cartels, arresting a Mexican drug kingpin allegedly linked to a network of clandestine methamphetamine laboratories and dismantling an industrial-scale facility in Ebonyi State.
The suspect, Arturo Carrera Loaiza, was arrested on August 19, 2026, while attempting to flee Nigeria through the Lagos airport, following months of intelligence-led investigation into a wider drug network operating in parts of the country.
The NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd.), disclosed the development while briefing journalists in Lagos on Tuesday.
Marwa, who was represented by the Agency’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the latest operation followed earlier breakthroughs in Ogun and Oyo states involving Mexican nationals and their Nigerian collaborators.
Investigations into the arrest of a 56-year-old Mexican methamphetamine expert, Jose Villa Ochoa, at a forest laboratory in Tapa village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, reportedly led investigators to Loaiza.
According to the NDLEA, Villa Ochoa identified Loaiza as the Mexican national who recruited and brought him into Nigeria.
Intelligence further showed that Loaiza entered the country on June 10 alongside another Mexican national, Jose Ceballos Perez.
When arrested at the Lagos airport, Loaiza reportedly claimed he had been invited to Nigeria by a Nigerian contact identified as “Henry” for a restaurant business venture and denied any involvement in methamphetamine production.
However, investigators allegedly recovered photographs showing Loaiza wearing a blue laboratory coat and standing among equipment consistent with methamphetamine production.
The location metadata from the photographs led NDLEA operatives to a property under construction at Isiata Ugoni Okposi in Ebonyi State.
CCTV footage links suspect to Ebonyi property
On August 30, NDLEA operatives moved on the Ebonyi property, which was linked to John Samuel Ivo Okike.
The Agency said interviews with people at the site, including a site engineer and a caretaker, revealed a suspicious temporary structure over the septic tank area and persistent chemical odours from the premises.
A CCTV memory card recovered from the property subsequently provided what the NDLEA described as crucial evidence.
According to the Agency, forensic examination of the footage showed a foreign national wearing a blue laboratory coat at the property, matching the image earlier recovered of Loaiza.
The footage also allegedly captured Okike repeatedly at the location and showed the movement of chemicals and laboratory equipment from the property at about 9 p.m. on August 21.
The NDLEA said Okike was seen directing the operation, alongside other individuals involved in relocating the materials.
Acting on further intelligence, operatives traced the relocated materials to an isolated house in a neighbouring community, where they were allegedly kept by Nwanja Obasi.
A raid on the location led to the recovery of a substantial cache of chemicals, equipment and other materials linked to methamphetamine production.
The items included a dehydrator containing loose methamphetamine, three additional dehydrators, 442.8 kilogrammes of acetone, 37.1 kilogrammes of toluene, 20 kilogrammes of an acetone/bromobenzene mixture, 31.5 kilogrammes of hydrochloric acid and 200 kilogrammes of P2B, among other substances.
NDLEA operatives also recovered condensing units, a condenser head, a fabricated reaction pot, pumps, weighing scales, mixers, drums, gas burners and a blue laboratory coat matching the one reportedly seen in the Ebonyi property.
The Agency said the recovery, combined with CCTV footage, forensic evidence and eyewitness accounts, has strengthened its case against those allegedly connected to the network.
‘Nigeria will not be a haven for drug cartels’ — Marwa
Reacting to the latest breakthrough, Marwa warned transnational drug organisations against attempting to establish laboratories in Nigeria.
He said the Agency would not allow the country’s forests and rural communities to become safe havens for international drug cartels seeking to relocate their operations.
Marwa said the arrest of Loaiza and the dismantling of the Ebonyi facility, coming after the Ogun and Oyo operations, demonstrate the NDLEA’s growing intelligence and forensic capabilities.
He commended officers of the Special Operations Unit, Strike Force and Forensics teams, as well as the Oyo, Ogun and Ebonyi State Commands, for their roles in the operations.
The NDLEA chairman vowed that the Agency would continue to pursue every lead until the wider network, including its financiers and local collaborators, are brought to justice.
The Agency also urged residents, particularly those living in rural and forested communities, to report suspicious activities, unusual chemical odours and unfamiliar structures to the NDLEA through its toll-free line 080010203040 or email info@ndlea.gov.ng.