Man was bringing ‘army of ants’ from abroad, secret revealed at airport, officials stunned! What will happen to them?

Ants Smuggling In China: A strange case of smuggling came to light at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Here a Chinese citizen has been arrested for smuggling more than 2000 queen garden ants. According to officials, the accused has been identified as Zhang Kekun, who was trying to take these live ants to China by hiding them in his luggage. Officials were stunned when they found ants falling from everything from test tubes to tissue paper rolls.

According to the information, during the security check, the officials found live ants in the man’s bag. After this he was immediately taken into custody. At present, Zhang has not responded to these allegations, but investigating agencies say that he may be related to a big ant smuggling gang, which was caught in Kenya last year. According to the BBC report, the government lawyer has requested in the court that permission be given for forensic examination of the mobile phone and laptop of the accused so that more information can be obtained about this smuggling network.

What was this whole matter?

Kenya Wildlife Service senior official Duncan Juma said that the scope of the investigation is being expanded and there is a possibility that more arrests may be made in this case. He said investigators are also looking into illegal ants collecting and selling activities in other cities in Kenya. Let us tell you that a similar case had come to light last year also. In May, a Kenyan court convicted four people of attempting to smuggle thousands of live queen ants. The court sentenced him to one year in jail or a fine of $7,700. Investigators suspect that Zhang Kekun is the leader of the network of accused arrested last year and he had managed to escape last year. He asked for permission to keep him in custody for 5 days so that other members of his smuggling network could be reached.

Which ants were being smuggled?

1. Kenya Wildlife Service is usually known for protecting large animals like lions and elephants, but officials said this issue is also very important.
2. The seized ants are Giant African Harvester Ants, which are considered extremely important for the environment. Experts say that if they are removed from the natural environment on a large scale, it can have a negative impact on soil quality and biodiversity.
3. Investigative agencies believe that these ants were being smuggled to sell in foreign pet markets of Europe and Asia, where they are in high demand. People keep them in containers and watch their colonies, which is like therapy.
4. Their demand has increased due to their large size, beautiful looks and interesting colony behavior. The price of a queen ant ranges from Rs 8000-18000, while the entire colony is sold for more than Rs 10000.