A Chinese national has been arrested at Kenya’s main airport and accused of trying to smuggle more than 2,000 garden ants out of the country.
Zhang Kequn was intercepted during security checks at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in the capital, Nairobi, after authorities found a large number of live ants in his luggage bound for China.
He has yet to respond to the charges, but investigators told the court he was linked to an ant smuggling network that was dismantled in Kenya last year.
These ants are protected by an international biodiversity treaty and their trade is strictly regulated.
Last year, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) warned of growing demand for garden ants (scientifically known as Messor cephalotes) in Europe and Asia, where collectors keep them as pets.
A state prosecutor told the court on Wednesday that Zhang contained some of the ants in test tubes and hid others in tissue paper rolls in luggage.
Prosecutor Allen Mulama told the court: “1,948 garden ants were found in specialized test tubes in his personal luggage.”
He added: “A further 300 live ants were found in three rolls of tissue paper inside the suitcase.”
Prosecutors asked the court to allow a forensic examination of the suspect’s electronic devices (cellphones and laptops).
Senior KWS official Duncan Juma told the BBC that more arrests are expected as investigators expand their investigation to other Kenyan towns where ant harvesting is suspected to be taking place.
In May last year, a Kenyan court sentenced four men to a year in prison or a $7,700 (£5,800) fine for trying to smuggle thousands of live queen ants out of the country, the first case of its kind.
The four suspects – two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan – admitted the charges after being arrested in what KWS described as “a coordinated, intelligence-led operation”.
The Belgians told the court they collected the highly sought-after ants as a hobby and did not consider it illegal.
Investigators now say Zhang was the mastermind behind the human trafficking ring but apparently fled Kenya last year using a different passport.
On Wednesday, the court allowed prosecutors to detain him for five days so detectives can conduct further investigations.
The KWS, which is more accustomed to protecting large animals such as lions and elephants, described last year’s ruling as a “landmark case”.
The ants captured last year were giant African harvester ants, which the KWS said are ecologically important, noting that removing them from the ecosystem could damage soil health and biodiversity.
The intended destination is believed to be exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia.
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[Getty Images/BBC]
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