Kenya lauds sentencing in wildlife crime case over smuggling of 5,000 ants

Nairobi, May 7 The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) on Wednesday welcomed the sentencing of four individuals, including three foreigners, for attempting to traffic more than 5,000 live garden ants out of the East African country.

The KWS, a state corporation mandated to conserve and manage Kenya's wildlife, said the decisive action against two Belgian nationals, a Vietnamese citizen and a Kenyan national, who were each fined one million Kenyan shillings (about 7,740 US dollars), sends a clear and resounding message that Kenya will not waver in its fight against wildlife crime, no matter the species involved.

"The smuggling of these ants is not merely a wildlife crime. It is an act of biopiracy," the KWS said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, Xinhua news agency reported.

The offenders were apprehended last month in Nairobi and the lakeside town of Naivasha for illegal possession of the ants, valued at 9,288 dollars, without the requisite permits.

The ants were destined for the European and Asian exotic pet trade, where rare and ecologically unique species can command prices of up to 1,350 dollars each.

Senior Principal Magistrate Njeri Thuku on Wednesday sentenced each offender to pay a fine of 7,740 dollars or serve 12 months in prison in case of default.

Thuku underscored the collective responsibility to safeguard Kenya's biodiversity, saying that no species is too small to protect. "Our wildlife, from ants to elephants, sustains our ecosystems and national heritage," she said.

The seized ants (Messor cephalotes), a critical species in maintaining soil health and ecosystem balance, are to be handed over to the National Museums of Kenya if no appeal is lodged within 14 days.

"Today's ruling sends an unequivocal message: Kenya will not tolerate the plunder of its biodiversity. Whether it is an ant or an elephant, we will pursue traffickers relentlessly," said KWS Director General Erustus Kanga.

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