The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has uncovered a methamphetamine production factory in Lagos and arrested two suspects.
The suspects are Bernard Umezurike, 44, the alleged owner of the illegal production centre, and Polycarp Ndilobi, 41, who was alleged working in the laboratory when NDLEA swooped on the building.
Methamphetamine, which has many street names, including “speed”, “meth”, “chalk”, “ice”, “crystal” and “glass,” is a white, odourless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that easily dissolves in water or alcohol and could be taken orally, nasally or intravenously.
The NDLEA chairman, Ahmadu Giade, who announced this in Lagos, disclosed that forensic experts from the United States had commenced the dismantling of the laboratory and evacuation of materials used in the production of the illicit drug.
Ahmadu, who further disclosed that the factory was located around Iba in Ojo local government area of the state, added that the facility had the capacity to produce 20 to 50 kilogrammes of the substance per cycle.
Giade, who described the find as “the first of its type in West Africa and a land mark success in Nigeria’s drug control operations,” said that the house had been sealed up. He blamed Nigerians’ involvement in drug production and trafficking on the penchant for wealth.
“Covert laboratories such as this where narcotics are produced is novel in the country. The demand on law enforcement is quite enormous and the health implications horrific. The inordinate quest for wealth has driven man to commit unimaginable criminal and sordid acts,” he lamented.