New Delhi: South district police have arrested an alleged narcotics kingpin and uncovered a makeshift “chemical kitchen” that was being used to manufacture high-end psychotropic substances such as MDMA and heroin. The crackdown on synthetic drug distribution in the city led to the arrest of Emmanuel (36), a Nigerian national, who was allegedly caught with ready-to-sell heroin.
The illicit lab was operating out of the suspect’s modest house in the Devli area of south Delhi. Police seized a large quantity of raw materials used for synthesising drugs, along with processed heroin.
Officials said the house contained about 16 kg of crystalline material and 16 kg of grey, grain-like substances used as base ingredients for drug production. The haul also included 51 kg of liquids stored in multiple containers and 30 unlabelled glass bottles, all meant for chemical processing linked to MDMA and heroin. In total, 113 kg of raw material was recovered. Police said the quantity of drugs that could have been produced from these chemicals would be worth several crores of rupees in the international market.
DCP (South) Ankit Chauhan said the breakthrough came on January 20, when a team led by ACP Mukesh Walia and SHO Paras Nath Verma arrested the suspect while he was allegedly on his way to sell processed heroin. The operation was part of a special drive against organised crime and illegal foreign nationals.
“Police teams on foot patrol noticed the suspect behaving suspiciously. When he tried to evade them, he was intercepted and searched, leading to the recovery of premium heroin worth over ₹1 crore. As the interrogation progressed, the case went beyond a routine drug bust and exposed a sophisticated manufacturing network,” a senior officer said.
During a subsequent raid at his residence, officers discovered the large stockpile of chemicals stored in multiple containers. Investigators believe the scale of the seizure indicates that the accused was not merely a courier or street-level dealer, but a key producer or supplier within a larger Nigerian gang.
Police said the ability to convert industrial-grade chemicals into “high-quality” heroin and MDMA signals a shift from smuggling to local manufacturing, making the bust particularly significant. Emmanuel had allegedly been living in India illegally and managed to operate unnoticed by blending into densely populated residential areas of Devli.
An FIR has been registered against him under the NDPS Act. Given the volume of the seizure, police suspect links to an international cartel and have launched a deeper investigation.
Special CP Madhup Tiwari has constituted a team under Joint CP Sanjay Jain to trace the wider supply chain and track down other absconding members of the network.
