Ivory smugglers busted in Kenya

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Nairobi - Security services in Nairobi seized 131 tusks and arrested two suspects when their truck broke down.

One of the two was already free on bail in another case related to poaching. The blood ivory was cleverly hidden in a water bowser but an apparent tip off had police swoop in and arrest a Kenyan and a Guinean man just a few kilometres from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) headquarters along Langata Road.

This latest find confirms that poaching and trading remain ongoing challenges for KWS.

More suspects are being sought, as the two arrested are not likely to be the only ones involved in this major haul.

Meanwhile, it was also reported from Kenya that the office of the public prosecutor has established a new prosecution unit to deal entirely with wildlife crimes, giving hope that cases are no longer bungled as in the past when culprits regularly walked away on technicalities or by paying small fines. – SAnews.gov.za-NNN