NCB busts secret meth lab near Delhi and says it has links to Mexican cartel | Latest Indian News

NEW DELHI: The Bureau of Narcotics Control on Tuesday said it had busted a clandestine methamphetamine lab linked to members of the Mexican drug cartel, Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion. The laboratory, located in an industrial area in Gautam Budh Nagar near Delhi, was run by Indian nationals, NCB officials said.

NCB Deputy Director General (DDG) Gyaneshwar Singh said the four arrested include a Mumbai-based chemist and the superintendent of Tihar Jail.

The NCB is searching for a Mexican national suspected of being a member of Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion, who lived in Delhi and was involved in testing the purity of the drug.

NCB chief Kumar Singh said, “Based on information that a laboratory has been set up in Delhi NCR to produce synthetic drugs like methamphetamine for export to other countries and also for consumption in India by members of the Mexican drug cartel CJNG ( Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion), on October 25, 2024, the NCB raided a factory in Kasana Industrial Estate, Gautam Budh Nagar area and recovered approximately 95 kg of methamphetamine in solid and liquid forms. Chemicals such as acetone, sodium hydroxide, methylene chloride, premium ethanol, toluene, red phosphorus, ethyl acetate, etc., as well as imported manufacturing equipment were also found. A special unit of the Delhi Police was also involved in the operation as the drug network had its footprints in several places in Delhi NCR.”

According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) website, the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion is one of the five most dangerous transnational criminal organizations in the world. He is responsible for smuggling tons of cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl-laced heroin into the United States.

Singh said that a businessman from West Delhi and the superintendent of Tihar Jail were present at the factory during the raid. The two were instrumental in setting up the illegal factory, procuring chemicals required for methamphetamine production from various sources and importing equipment, the officer said.

“The businessman was earlier arrested by the Department of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in the NDPS case and lodged in Tihar jail where he met the jail superintendent who became his accomplice.

Singh added that they have roped in a Mumbai-based pharmacist to manufacture the drugs. A Mexican cartel member living in Delhi was testing the quality of drugs.

The four arrested by the NCB are in police custody for three days.

The federal agency is currently investigating the gang’s forward and backward connections, its financial trail and the assets it acquired.

This is the fifth such laboratory seized by the NCB this year. Officials believe the drug mafia began setting up such clandestine laboratories to produce synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine and mephedrone in industrial zones so that local law enforcement would not be alerted to the transportation of materials and equipment, laboratory waste and toxic substances. smoke from chimneys.