By Lizzy Chirkpi
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has dismantled a Nigerian-Mexican drug cartel allegedly operating a clandestine methamphetamine laboratory in Eziama community, Obeagu, Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State.
The operation resulted in the arrest and arraignment of two alleged kingpins of the syndicate, 45-year-old Chukwu Obumneme Christopher, also known as Brown, and 60-year-old Chukwu Georginus Monday, alias George.
The NDLEA said the suspects allegedly operated the laboratory in collaboration with Rodriguez Villanueva, a suspected member of a Mexican drug cartel based in Mexico City.
According to the agency, the arrests followed months of intelligence gathering and surveillance by its Special Operations Unit.
The suspects were arraigned before Justice Mabel Taiye Segun-Bello of the Federal High Court, Enugu Judicial Division, on a five-count charge bordering on conspiracy, organisation, management and financing of a drug trafficking organisation, as well as unlawful possession of precursor chemicals used in the production of methamphetamine.
They pleaded to the charges, following which the court fixed October 21, 2026, for trial.
The NDLEA said other suspects named in the charge, including Uchenna, alias Uche; Celestine Ikemefuna Iwuchukwu; and Villanueva, remain at large.
The agency said its surveillance operation, conducted between December 1 and 4, 2025, tracked Brown’s movements across Lagos, Enugu and Anambra states before leading operatives to the compound in Obeagu.
A search of the premises, according to the NDLEA, uncovered a clandestine laboratory equipped with improvised reactors and distillation equipment allegedly capable of producing methamphetamine on a commercial scale.
The agency said the facility was similar to clandestine laboratories previously dismantled in Ogun, Oyo and Ebonyi states.
Among the substances recovered were 690 litres of methylamine, 1,000 litres of isopropyl alcohol, 300 litres of hydrochloric acid, 290 litres each of toluene and acetone, and 400 litres of liquid sodium hydroxide.
Also recovered were 125kg of N-phenylacetamide, 414kg of lead acetate and 769.6kg of tartaric acid, alongside other controlled substances.
The NDLEA said a search of George’s family residence also led to the recovery of eight large fuel tanks, four commercial gas burners, four dehydrators and 11kg of ephedrine.
According to the agency, the volume and nature of the materials recovered were consistent with a sophisticated P2P-based methamphetamine production operation.
Reacting to the development, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), said the dismantling of the syndicate demonstrated the agency’s determination to prevent Nigeria from becoming a base for international drug cartels.
Marwa said the agency would continue to pursue suspects who remain at large and ensure that those connected to the operation are brought before the law.
“The dismantling of this syndicate is another proof that transnational drug networks will not have any space to operate in Nigeria,” Marwa said.
He commended the officers involved in the operation, describing their work as a demonstration of professionalism, intelligence gathering and persistence.
Marwa further warned local and foreign drug traffickers that the agency would continue to deploy intelligence-driven operations and international partnerships to disrupt their activities.
“We will continue to close every loophole exploited by drug barons, whether local or foreign,” he said.
The NDLEA chairman directed personnel to sustain enforcement operations against illicit drug production and trafficking as investigations continue into the wider network allegedly linked to the Enugu laboratory.