Anti-narcotics officers inspect the site of a suspected illegal drug laboratory in a dense forested area of western Nigeria
BySimi Jolaoso
Africa correspondentReporting fromOgun state
The 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 liquid form of the drug 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, including propane gas cylinders and bags of caustic soda, in the unfinished building.
This temporary move of the federal high court to a location a two-hour drive from Lagos was an unusual step for Nigeria's judicial system, but 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.
The first time the NDLEA announced it had discovered a Mexican-linked methamphetamine lab was in 2016, when it described it as a "super lab".
The temporary courtroom, where the suspects appeared on Wednesday, and the evidence were under heavy guard
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 have 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 quickly scale up production.
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 alleged laboratory was hidden from prying eyes
West Africa poses numerous attractive benefits to Mexican syndicates, starting with swathes of forested land which makes well for secluded production sites.
"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).
The use of the drug has spread across the continent, according to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.
In East Africa, it has become widely available in countries like Kenya and Tanzania, and also in southern Africa, like in South Africa where it is known as "tik".
Drug syndicates are as interested in international drug markets, as they are in the growing local market, and Africa's location makes it easier to reach Asia and Europe.
It looked like a sophisticated operation had been set up at the suspected meth laboratory
Producing drugs in West Africa gives traffickers access to Atlantic shipping routes. Combined with the region's porous borders and weaker regulation of chemical imports, this helps them cut costs to lucrative consumer markets.
In Europe, the UNODC reported a 47% increase in methamphetamine use between 2014 and 2024. In east and south-east Asia seizures of the drug by authorities reached a record high in 2024.
"It's a shortening [of] their [supply] line into Asia and a shortening of their pathway into Europe," said Griego.
Since returning to office in 2025, US President Donald Trump has intensified efforts against Latin American drug cartels and their operations.
"These cartels are feeling the pressure from other parts of the world," said Babafemi, "and so [they] are looking at West Africa as a corporate production hub."
Some experts believe tighter scrutiny of traditional trafficking routes from Latin America may be one factor driving cartels to diversify their operations.
"That has at least been a part of the calculus of why Mexican cartels have escalated their operations in Africa. That to say though, it is only part of the story," said Griego.
"Sinaloa and New Jalisco have always been global organisations. They have operated [in Africa] since the 1990s."
But a recent rise in the number of raids on illicit methamphetamine laboratories in Africa could indicate that the cartels are becoming more entrenched on the continent.
What is clear is that the trade is no longer just transiting through the continent but finding new manufacturing sites and markets.
With measures such as the court hearing at the laboratory, increased surveillance and intelligence use, the Nigerian authorities are adamant they can rise to the challenge.
"It's definitely a concern but it helps us stay vigilant and be proactive. This is why we are able to get them before they're able to move out into our communities and into the international market," NDLEA spokesperson Babafemi said.
"We've been able to prove that Nigeria won't be a safe haven for them."
