Langley, Virginia | A major explosion occurred last night at the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency, igniting a fire which almost completely destroyed an annex of the building and led to the discovery of a suspected drug lab.
The detonation took place around 11:30 pm last night. The powerful blast was heard for miles around the complex and sent plumes of black smoke into the air.
The firefighters of the Langley City Fire-Rescue were rapidly mobilized on the site, where they fought the fire for almost six hours before they were finally able to extinguish the flames.
While inspecting the building to secure the area, they found large quantities of chemicals and over-the-counter medications that are used to make meth and fentanyl.
The firefighters transmitted the information to the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO), which dispatched dozens of deputies and investigators on the scene.
After conducting a search of the western wing of the George Bush Center for Intelligence, they found more than 2 tons of pure pseudoephedrine, as well as large quantities of acetone, iodine crystals, battery acid, drain cleaner, lantern fuel and antifreeze.
“The various chemicals found on the scene are either used to produce methamphetamine or fentanyl, and we also found a lot of drugs,” said FCSO spokesman, Jared Matters. “We also found large quantities of these two drugs in a nearby storage room that was spared by the fire.”
The Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office confirmed it had opened an investigation to determine if the site was an illegal drug lab and if the fire was caused by an illegal activity.
More than 5 tons of drugs and 45 tons of chemicals were seized in the building which some deputies have described as an “industrial-scale drug lab”.
This is not the first time that the CIA is accused of manufacturing and trafficking illegal drugs.
While the CIA was sponsoring a Secret War in Laos from 1961 to 1975, it was accused of trafficking in opium. The CIA made its own internal inquiries of its staff and clients in Laos concerning the drug trade and admitted that small amounts of opium had been smuggled via their contract aircraft.
Several local, state, and federal investigations have also taken place concerning the alleged use of the Mena Intermountain Municipal Airport as a CIA drop point in large scale cocaine trafficking beginning in the early 1980s.
This is the first time, however, that drugs are seized on an official CIA installation, and the incident could have some very serious consequences for the organization which is already at odds with the new American President.
Neither the White House or the CIA, have officially reacted yet, but many analysts expect Donald Trump to use this investigation as a pretext to cut the agency’s funding.