Police have uncovered a yaba manufacturing facility inside a residential building in Tongi, Gazipur, and arrested a 32-year-old man in connection with the operation.
During the raid, police seized various equipment and chemical substances used to manufacture the drug.
The arrestee, Nazmul Islam Bappi, was detained around 1:30am on Saturday during a raid in the Pagar (Alectec) area of Tongi. He is the son of Taizul Islam and a resident of the same area.
According to police, Bappi had set up the facility himself after gathering information about yaba production from the internet, Facebook and YouTube.
Bappi claimed that he returned to Bangladesh several years ago after living abroad. He later became involved in a relationship with a young woman and turned to drug addiction after being emotionally distressed over the relationship. He subsequently decided to establish a yaba production facility.
Tongi East Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Maksudul Alam said police had been monitoring Bappi's residence for several days based on a tip-off.
Acting on the information, police raided the house late Friday night and discovered the facility on the fourth floor, along with a stockpile of chemicals and other materials used in yaba production.
The OC said the premises contained a laboratory and a concealed room built deep inside the building, making access difficult. Bappi had stockpiled various chemicals and other essential ingredients for manufacturing the drug.
During preliminary interrogation, Bappi admitted to collecting the chemicals to produce yaba, the OC added.