Shopping cart
Your cart empty!
'Ant gang' sentenced for smuggling thousands of live insects
Two Belgian teenagers who were found with 5,000 ants in Kenya have been given the choice of serving 12 months in prison or paying a fine of $7,700 (£5,767) for trying to smuggle live queen ants out of the country.
Authorities said the ants were destined for European and Asian markets in an emerging trend of trafficking lesser-known wildlife species. Belgian nationals Lornoy David and Seppe Lodewijckx, both 19, were arrested and charged last month after they were found with the ants at a guest house in Nakuru county, which is home to various national parks.
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said the species included messor cephalotes, a distinctive, large and red-coloured harvester ant native to East Africa. The teenagers claimed in court that they were naive and collecting the ants as a hobby.
However, David's phone revealed he was a member of a group known as "Ant Gang.
Amir Nisi
Creative and experienced content writer with 6+ years of experience lazy to create unique content strategy for News5 to turn website visitors into customers.
Related to this topic:
AI and Marketing: Unlocking Customer Insights
Feb 22, 2024
