Another Drug Bust In Delhi: NCB Dismantles Meth Lab Linked To Mexican Cartel; Tihar Jail Warden, Mumbai Chemist Involved

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) announced on Tuesday (29 October) that it had dismantled a methamphetamine manufacturing lab in Gautam Budh Nagar, near Delhi, connected to the Mexican drug cartel Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion.

According to NCB Deputy Director General Gyaneshwar Singh, the bust led to the arrest of four individuals, including a chemist from Mumbai and a Tihar jail warden. Indian nationals were reportedly running the operation in an industrial area.

Authorities are also searching for a Mexican national believed to be part of the cartel, who was allegedly testing the drug’s purity. NCB launched the operation on 25 October, following intelligence about a synthetic drug lab operating in the Delhi NCR area.

The Cartel De Jalisco Nueva Generacion, recognised by the US DEA as one of the world’s top five transnational criminal organisations, is known for trafficking vast quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl-laced heroin into the United States.

The raid at a factory in Kasana Industrial Area uncovered approximately 95 kg of methamphetamine in both solid and liquid forms, as well as chemicals like acetone and sodium hydroxide, specialised machinery, and imported equipment used in the drug's production.

The operation also involved Delhi Police’s special cell due to the network’s presence across multiple NCR locations. NCB noted that a businessman from West Delhi and a Tihar jail warden played key roles in setting up the illicit lab, sourcing chemicals, and importing machinery.

The businessman, who had been previously arrested in a narcotics case and met the warden while in Tihar jail, was instrumental in initiating the operation. A chemist from Mumbai was hired to manufacture the drugs, with a Mexican cartel member residing in Delhi handling quality checks.

Currently, the four arrested individuals are in police custody for three days as the NCB investigates the cartel's network, financial assets, and logistical operations.

This is the fifth meth lab dismantled by the NCB this year, as drug mafias increasingly shift to clandestine labs in industrial zones to evade detection by local authorities.

Earlier this month, the Delhi Police made one of the largest drug seizures in the city's history, confiscating over 560 kilograms (kgs) of cocaine valued at approximately Rs 2,000 crore.