Chinese man jailed for one year by Kenyan court over ant trafficking

NAIROBI, Kenya — A Chinese national was sentenced on Wednesday to one year in jail by a Kenyan court after being found guilty of illegally possessing wildlife for having hundreds of live ants stored in specialized tubes.

Zhang Kequn was also fined 1 million Kenyan shillings ($7,700) after pleading guilty to the charge of wildlife possession without a license.

Kenya has previously fined Belgian teenagers who were found in possession of queen ants, which are used as delicacies and kept as pets in Europe and Asia.

Kequn had been charged alongside Kenyan Charles Mwangi who pleaded not guilty to the offense and was released on cash bail.

Prosecutors say Kequn had been sourcing the ants from Mwangi, allegedly paying 60,000 Kenyan shillings ($463) for an initial batch of 600 ants, and 70,000 shillings ($540) for another batch of 700.

The suspects were arrested on March 10 after authorities found them in possession of 1,948 garden ants stored in specialized tubes, along with an additional 300 ants in tissue rolls. Prosecutors say the suspects did not have the permits required under Kenya’s wildlife conservation laws to handle or trade such species.

Last year, two Belgian teenagers were charged with wildlife piracy in what Kenyan authorities described as part of a trend involving the trafficking of smaller, lesser-known species. They were found with 5,000 ants in test tubes. The insects were said to be destined for European and Asian markets, and Kenyan authorities valued the ants at 1 million shillings ($7,700).