Four arrested in Kenya for attempting to smuggle rare queen ants worth $7 800
Kenyan authorities have arrested four suspects two Belgians, a Vietnamese national, and a Kenyan for attempting to smuggle approximately 5,000 queen ants out of the country.
Valued at around KSh1 million ($7,800), the rare Giant African Harvester Ants (Messor cephalotes) were concealed in over 2,200 modified test tubes and syringes designed to keep them alive during transit.
The suspects were apprehended in coordinated operations in Naivasha and Nairobi and later pleaded guilty to charges of wildlife trafficking and biopiracy at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport Law Courts. The ants were reportedly destined for exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia, where a single queen ant can sell for as much as £170 ($220).
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) has praised the arrests as a major breakthrough in the fight against biopiracy, citing violations of both Kenya’s biodiversity laws and the international Nagoya Protocol. Sentencing is scheduled for April 23, 2025.
