Chemistry students turn apartment into drug lab in Tashkent (video)

An 18-year-old woman and a 22-year-old man were found to have turned their apartment into a drug laboratory in Mirzo Ulugbek district of Tashkent, the Interior Ministry reported.

According to the statement, the woman, born in 2007, and the student, born in 2003, had been organizing precursors and producing synthetic drugs since September 2025 under instructions from Telegram-based handlers.

During a special operation, officers seized 1 kilogram of the synthetic drug mephedrone from their apartment, along with equipment and tools used in the drug laboratory.

The operation continued after investigators tracked geolocation data received on the detained student’s mobile phone. Officers discovered another 1 kilogram of synthetic drugs buried in a field in Yangihayot district using the “dead drop” method.

Nine additional individuals who had been collecting drugs from geolocation points across Tashkent were also detained. Authorities said three of them were students at prestigious universities in the capital.

A criminal case has been opened against members of the group under Article 273 of the Criminal Code, which covers the illegal production, possession and distribution of narcotic or psychotropic substances with intent to sell.

Earlier, authorities reported preventing the sale of 1 kilogram of heroin in Samarkand region.

Javohir Alikulov