Dispute over Interpreter Stalls Trial of 3 Mexicans, 7 Nigerians in Landmark Ogun Forest 2.4-tonnne Meth Laboratory Case

Femi Ashekun/

The prosecution of three Mexican nationals and seven Nigerians over what investigators describe as one of the most significant clandestine methamphetamine laboratory discoveries in Nigeria suffered an early setback on Thursday after an interpreter dispute and complaints over the late service of court documents stalled their arraignment before the Federal High Court in Lagos.

The defendants were expected to take their pleas before Justice Musa Kakaki on an 11 count charge filed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

However, proceedings could not commence after the accused persons informed the court that they had only been served with the charge on the day scheduled for their arraignment.

The three Mexican defendants also told the court they were not comfortable with the interpreter engaged for the proceedings, prompting the judge to adjourn the case until July 10 for their arraignment.

The defendants are Juan Carlos Meza Torrero, Nemecio Martinez Felix, Jesus Lopez Valles, Anochili Innocent Nwankwo, Sunday Christian, Egwuonwu Uchenna Victor, Igwe Abuchi Remijus, Ifeanyichukwu Chibuike Joshua, Omonughwa Kingsley Orike and Emeka Christopher Nwobum.

The case, marked FHC/CR/430/2026, stems from the NDLEA’s dismantling of an alleged clandestine methamphetamine production facility in Mowe Forest, Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State, an operation the agency said exposed an industrial scale synthetic drug manufacturing network hidden deep within a forest.

According to the charge filed by the NDLEA, the defendants conspired to manufacture and possess 2,419.48 kilogrammes of methamphetamine, a psychotropic substance whose production and distribution are prohibited under Nigerian law.

Prosecuting counsel, Buhari S. Abdullahi, also alleged that the defendants managed, organised and financed a drug trafficking organisation involved in the processing and manufacture of the illicit substance.

The prosecution further accused them of transporting precursor chemicals used in methamphetamine production from Lagos to the alleged laboratory in Ogun State using a Toyota Tacoma, a Mercedes Benz with registration number APP 942 YL and a Toyota Highlander with registration number GWA 662 DJ.

Among the chemicals allegedly recovered were 358 kilogrammes of toluene, 1,834 kilogrammes of hydrochloric acid and 22.5 kilogrammes of acetone, in addition to unspecified quantities of Phenyl 2 Propanone, commonly known as P2P, and phenylacetic acid, all of which are widely recognised as precursor chemicals used in the illicit manufacture of methamphetamine.

The NDLEA further alleged that the first defendant, Anochili Innocent Nwankwo, owned and managed the fenced property in Mowe Forest where the laboratory operated and knowingly permitted it to be used for the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine.

The offences are alleged to contravene Sections 11(a), 12, 14(b), 19, 20(1)(e) and 20(1)(g) of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap N30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, and are punishable under Section 20(2)(a) of the Act.

The case has attracted national attention because of its international dimension and the scale of the alleged operation.

When the laboratory was uncovered, the NDLEA described it as one of the largest clandestine methamphetamine production facilities ever detected in Nigeria, underscoring growing concerns about the involvement of transnational criminal networks in the manufacture of synthetic drugs within the country.

Over the past decade, the NDLEA has repeatedly warned that Nigeria is no longer used solely as a transit route for narcotics but is increasingly becoming a production hub for synthetic drugs destined for both domestic consumption and international trafficking.

The agency has intensified operations against clandestine laboratories, particularly in the South West, where several illicit production sites have been uncovered in recent years.

With the arraignment now deferred, formal trial proceedings will begin only after the defendants have been served with the necessary court processes and interpretation arrangements acceptable to the court have been put in place.

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