Kenya

Kenya Charges Duo for Allegedly Smuggling Thousands of Live Ants

Was this a harmless hustle by clueless entrepreneurs or a serious act of biopiracy threatening Kenya's ecosystems?

Published MAR 18

Kenya Charges Duo for Allegedly Smuggling Thousands of Live Ants

Story

Above: Some of the syringe cartridges modified to carry live ants at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport law courts in Nairobi, Kenya, on March 17. Image credit: Tony KARUMBA/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

Two men were charged at the Jomo Kenyatta International Law Court in Kenya on Tuesday for unlawfully dealing in live wildlife species and conspiracy to commit a felony after officials caught the pair in possession of thousands of ants.
Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions on X
BBC News
The Straits Times
According to Kenya's Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Zhang Kequn, a 37-year-old Chinese national, and Charles Mwangi, a 35-year-old Kenyan man, were arrested on March 10 after attempting to smuggle 1948 garden ants in "specialized tubes" and 300 live ants in toilet paper rolls.
Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions on X
Mwangi is accused of an additional offense after authorities allegedly found him illegally dealing 1,000 live ants in a pink basin, 113 garden ants in "specialized syringes" and 503 empty syringes without a permit in Gilgil town on March 13.
Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions on X
Kequn allegedly purchased each live ant from Mwangi for 100 Kenyan shillings, roughly equivalent to $0.77. On one occasion, Kequn paid Mwangi 60,000 shillings for 600 live ants, and on another, 70,000 shillings for a further 700 ants.
Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions on X
Both men pleaded not guilty, with a representative for Kequn, David Lusweti, telling The Associated Press that they were unaware of any wrongdoing. The DPP blocked Kequn's release on bond, arguing he posed a flight risk.
Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions on X
The Associated Press
1 News
The case is the latest involving ant smuggling in Kenya, after a Kenyan court sentenced four men — including two Belgians, a Vietnamese national and a Kenyan — to either pay a fine of 1 million shillings each or serve 12 months in prison for unlawfully dealing 5,000 ant queens and 300 garden ants in May 2025.
Kenya Law
Kenya Law

Sources Split

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RIGHT

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The Spin

Narrative A

Ant smuggling isn't some harmless hobby hustle — it's an act of biopiracy that is stripping Kenya of native species critical to its savannah ecosystems and seed dispersal. Motivating this is a lucrative criminal trade, with queen ants fetching up to $233 each abroad, which these two no doubt had in mind, despite the real ecological risks, including the threat of spreading invasive species.

ENACT

Narrative B

Charging these two men for collecting ants is an overreach, given that they genuinely didn't know it was illegal. In this case, the law evidently failed to make itself clear to Kequen or Mwangi, who saw a harmless entrepreneurial opportunity in the insects. Punishing them, therefore, will do little to address the real structural gaps in wildlife regulation that put ants in danger in the first place.