Chinese national jailed in Kenya for smuggling live queen ants

A Kenyan court on Wednesday sentenced a Chinese national named Zhang Kequn to one year in prison and ordered him to pay a fine of 1 million Kenyan shillings for attempting to smuggle live queen garden ants (fertile ants capable of starting new colonies) out of Kenya.

Kenyan authorities arrested Kequn at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport over a month ago while he was trying to travel to China with over 2,000 ants in his luggage. Officials charged him with illegally dealing in wildlife species.

The live queen garden ants have a huge market in Europe and Asia anand they could be worth up to $220 each.

According to the court documents, the accused brought the ants from a Kenyan national, Charles Mwangi, at $77 for every 100 of them. Mwangi was also arrested and charged; however, he is currently not in custody and is out on bail.

Earlier, Kequn pleaded not guilty to the charges but later changed his plea to guilty. Judge Irene Gichobi announced the verdict, describing the alleged smuggler as “not entirely honest”, adding, “There is need for a stiff deterrent sentence.”

After serving his sentence and paying the fine, Kequn will be deported to his home country, China. He has two weeks to appeal against the decision.

Live queen garden ants are purchased primarily to start a new ant colony (formicarium) for hobby, educational, or research purposes.

They are popular because a single fertile queen can produce thousands of workers, providing a long-term, low-maintenance, and silent pet