The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has issued a clarification following reports that a Mexican cartel had been running a methamphetamine laboratory in Namanga.
This statement comes just a day after a report by the US Department of State revealed that a meth lab was being run in Kenya until September 2024.
According to the DCI, several individuals including Kenyans and Nigerians had tried to set up the lab at the border town but had been cornered by the DCI Anti-Narcotics Unit before they would commence operations.
"Based on these facts (and others which are sub judice), we clarify that the drug cartel did not succeed in operationalizing their illegal activities in the country and that no member or members of the criminal ring have been deported from the country for trial elsewhere," the statement concluded after unravelling the details.
The DCI revealed that on September 12, 2024, they had raided a 10-acre parcel of land just eight kilometers from the Nairobi-Namanga Highway following a tip-off.
At the site, two iron sheet structures were discovered alongside other equipment that pointed to it being a possible drug manufacturing facility. One of the structures housed laboratory apparatus, including chemicals, while the other hosted a chemical store, kitchen, and sleeping area.
Two exercise books with lab drawings and chemical formulas were also recovered at the scene, alongside a mobile phone belonging to a Mexican suspect. A manhunt for the suspects was launched immediately.
The first suspect, a Kenyan was arrested on September 16, 2024, in Ruiru. She was suspected to have overseen the construction of the site alongside a Nigerian accomplice. Documents linking her to the purchase, importation, and distribution of the land, chemicals, and equipment found at the scene were seized during the arrest.
The Nigerian suspect was arrested in Lavington on October 1, 2024, while his brother, also involved in the plot was nabbed at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) two days later. The latter was revealed to have been the mastermind of the lab set-up.
He reportedly had businesses in Nigeria, Gabon, South Africa, and China and was linked to a drug cartel in South America.
The fourth suspect, a former investigator in the Mexican Police was also arrested at JKIA on his way back home. He is believed to be among three Mexicans brought on board by the Nigerian mastermind over their expertise in cooking meth. The other two are yet to be captured.
Two other Kenyans instrumental in the plan were also arrested, bringing the total of all charged at the JKIA court to six. Two Kenyan pharmacies used in the purchase of the chemicals were also indicted.
According to DCI, this was part of a powerful international nexus traversing the borders of Nigeria, India, Mexico, South Africa, and Gabon.
