How Mexican drug cartels have outsourced meth labs to Nigeria

BBCThe Nigerian judge was formally dressed, the lawyers maintained legal decorum and protocol was followed – but this hearing was not in the comfortable confines of a Lagos courtroom; it was inside an alleged illicit drug laboratory in the thick of a dense forest.Three Mexicans and seven Nigerians were paraded in handcuffs, as Justice Musa Kakaki inspected the chemicals and equipment they were accused of using to produce the harmful illegal synthetic drug, methamphetamine, commonly known as meth, crystal meth or, locally, ice.A bitter, pungent smell filled the air of the makeshift laboratory, thanks to a large drum of the drug in liquid form that was crystallising. Another potent odour came from open vats of a dark, viscous liquid, described as "crude", or unprocessed, methamphetamine.Other products were scattered around the unfinished building, including propane gas cylinders and bags of caustic soda.This temporary move of the federal high court to a location two hours from Lagos was an unusual step for Nigeria's judicial system. Still, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said it was necessary to understand the scale of the operation.When the suspects were arrested in May, the agency described it as the country's largest-ever meth bust. It said it discovered more than two tonnes of the drug worth some $360m (£270m).The NDLEA at the time announced it had "dealt another crippling blow" and dismantled "a highly sophisticated, multi-million-dollar Nigerian-Mexican methamphetamine production syndicate".There were signs that the methamphetamine production process had been disturbed.The following month, agents found another meth laboratory hidden in a forest in neighbouring Oyo State.That time they arrested five suspects, including one Mexican "methamphetamine expert".The raids underline a broader trend of Africa's, and particularly West Africa's, growing role in the global synthetic drugs trade and the shift by criminal cartels to use the continent, not just as a trafficking hub, but also as a production base.Mexican specialists in manufacturing methamphetamine, often described as "cooks", are increasingly being found working alongside locals in laboratories in Europe and Africa, according to law-enforcement agencies.Meth production has become increasingly sophisticated over the last few decades."They perfected it, to the point now it is the highest purity, the highest potency version of meth," James Griego, who leads counter-narcotics operations for US-Africa Command (Africom), told the BBC.Africom, which oversees US military operations on the continent, has provided several national anti-drug organisations with intelligence to assist with their raids."Anybody who is looking to consume methamphetamine, understands that the Mexican meth is the best in the world, for that purpose," Griego added.Super labThe first time the NDLEA announced it had discovered a Mexican-linked methamphetamine lab was in 2016, when it described it as a "super lab".These laboratories, where Mexicans have been working, have since been uncovered in Kenya, Mozambique and in South Africa.Since 2023, "we've seen…14 Mexican-operated labs in total [being raided]. We saw the one in 2023 [in Mozambique], we saw six more in 2024, we saw two in 2025, and we've seen five this year," Griego said."This last year when I talk about the five labs, four of the five are in Nigeria," he added.Intelligence from Africom and the US Drug Enforcement Administration has linked some of the laboratories to Mexico's two biggest drug cartels: the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New General Cartel.Giving testimony to the US Congress in May, Africom commander Gen Dagvin Anderson alleged that militant groups and narco-traffickers have been working together."African-based terror groups are financed to an increasing degree by drug cartels, expanding those terror groups' reach and lethality," he told lawmakers.Unlike plant-based drugs, such as cocaine or heroin, which can only be grown and processed in certain places, a synthetic drug like meth can be produced anywhere with the right chemicals and expertise, making it easier for organised crime groups to scale up production quickly.Known for its fast and long-lasting effects, methamphetamine delivers a euphoric high, but deeply unpleasant side effects. There is a serious risk of cardiovascular problems, malnourishment through poor diet and, if injecting, blood-borne diseases.Withdrawal from the drug is also very hard, as it often includes feelings of anxiety, severe depression, fatigue and intense cravings.As methamphetamine traffickers establish new distribution networks, beyond its historical routes, more people are being exposed to the drug."The population is also an attraction for them, especially the huge youth population because with that you get cheap labour and a market for local consumption," NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi told the BBC.There are fears among authorities that methamphetamine consumption will grow in Nigeria, where a 2018 survey found that 14.4% of the adult population had used an illicit drug - more than twice the global average as estimated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

How Mexican drug cartels have outsourced meth labs to Nigeria

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Namibian Sun 2026-07-30

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How Mexican drug cartels have outsourced meth labs to Nigeria

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Namibian Sun 2026-07-30

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