NDLEA Arrests Mexican Drug Kingpin, Dismantles Industrial Meth Lab in Ebonyi

<p>The suspect, identified as Arturo Carrera Loaiza, was arrested on August 19, 2026, while attempting to flee Nigeria through the Lagos airport.</p>

<p>The NDLEA Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd.), disclosed this on Tuesday in Lagos while briefing journalists on the agency's latest operation.</p>

<p>Marwa, who was represented by the agency's Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the arrest followed months of investigation into a wider network behind clandestine drug laboratories uncovered in Ogun and Oyo states.</p>

<p>The investigation began after the NDLEA arrested 56-year-old Mexican methamphetamine expert Jose Villa Ochoa and four Nigerians at a clandestine laboratory in Tapa village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area of Oyo State, on June 17.</p>

<p>According to the agency, Ochoa identified Loaiza as the Mexican national who recruited and brought him into Nigeria. </p>