In the most recent operation on April 17th 2024, Greater Noida police busted a meth manufacturing facility reportedly established by foreigners from a rented residence in Omicron-1, Greater Noida. The authorities conducting the raid on Wednesday arrested four Nigerian nationals. The individuals apprehended have been identified as Ifeanyi Johnbosco, Chidi, Emmenuel, and Onyekechi, all aged between 30 and 35.

The authorities confiscated 26.67 kilograms of methylenedioxyphenethylamine (MDMA), valued at ₹100 crore. Authorities also seized two vehicles utilized for transporting manufacturing equipment, chemicals, and illicit substances, as confirmed by the police. Moreover, during the operation, police only found passports belonging to two of the suspects.

According to the police official involved in the case, he stated, “As per the passport and visa details, Johnbosco arrived in India on February 1, 2021, and his visa expired on March 5, 2021. But he continued to stay illegally in the country. Emmenuel arrived in India on December 5, 2021. His visa will expire on November 19, 2024. Their visa details are being investigated and no other documents have been recovered from them so far.”

The recent operation on 17th April involved personnel from the Ecotech-1 police station, Dadri police station, SWAT team, and crime branch led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Greater Noida) SM Khan. Khan mentioned that this criminal group, which came into operation recently, was targeted during the raid.

“Around two weeks ago, police intelligence learned about a rent agreement made between the owner of a house in Omicron-1 and two foreign nationals. Acting on tip-offs, the house was being monitored by police, it was found that the foreign nationals were moving suspicious luggage into the house. A raid was conducted at the house on Wednesday and the four were arrested.” said the  police official. He further added :

“The four suspects have been sent to judicial custody after being produced before a magistrate. Police will apply for their remand custody to investigate more into the case. The raw material and chemical suppliers, their networks, their financial transactions and their national and international supply lines will be probed.”

This seizure follows earlier actions where police recovered over 75 kilograms of MDMA, colloquially known as ecstasy or molly, in interconnected raids on May 16th and May 30th of the previous year. During these events, approximately a dozen foreign nationals were arrested from residential properties housing sophisticated drug labs for meth production.

The methamphetamine produced in these incidents had a combined estimated worth exceeding ₹350 crore, as per law enforcement. 

During these investigations, the officials discovered that foreigners in the lower ranks of the syndicate were responsible for cooking meth in its "pure form." This meth was then transported to a contact person in Delhi and subsequently routed to Europe through channels that remain under investigation, as shared by an officer involved in the case with PTI.

The Police official explained why Greater Noida was selected as the venue for these lab setup. He explained, "In all three cases, the houses rented by the foreigners were in isolated locations and had open areas on at least three-sides so that the pungent smell emanating due to meth cooking does not catch the attention of people living close by.”

According to a police officer, the drug is priced at ₹80,000 to ₹90,000 per kg but fetches ₹2lakh to ₹3 lakh per kg in the black market. It's challenging to acquire in Europe, and if available, it commands prices of ₹8 lakh to ₹10 lakh per kg. Additionally, authorities believe these seizures might represent merely a fraction of a larger, intricate international drug network, hinting at a potentially vast and complex operation. 

You might also be interested in - Noida Airport gets a new code ‘DXN’; Find out what it stands for