Kenya court fines teens for trying to smuggle protected ants

May 8, 2025

A Kenyan court imposed fines totaling over $7,000 on four individuals, including two Belgian teenagers, for their involvement in attempting to smuggle a large number of live ants out of the country. The case gained significant attention as the Kenyan Wildlife Service accused the group of engaging in 'bio-piracy'. David Lornoy and Seppe Lodewijckx from Belgium, along with Duh Hung Nguyen from Vietnam and Dennis Nganga from Kenya, pleaded guilty to the possession of the ants but denied any intention of trafficking them. Lornoy and Lodewijckx were apprehended in Nakuru County with 5,000 queen ants packed in tubes, while Duh and Nganga were found with ants stored in syringes and containers. The court discovered that Lornoy, an 'ant enthusiast', was unaware that transporting the ants was illegal. The ants seized from the Belgians were valued at one million shillings, including the rare Messor cephalotes species. Possessing any wildlife specimen without a permit in Kenya is a criminal offense, typically punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 and imprisonment for five years or more. While sentencing the four individuals, the court issued a fine of one million shillings each or a year's imprisonment if the fine is not paid. The court acknowledged that Lornoy and Seppe did not fit the profile of typical poachers and were ignorant of the law. However, it emphasized a historical narrative of African resources being exploited by Western and Eastern countries. The Kenyan Wildlife Service condemned the individuals' actions, labeling it as both a wildlife crime and bio-piracy. The suspects had planned to smuggle the ants into exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia, where the demand for rare insect species is on the rise.

Tags: Kenya, Wildlife smuggling, Bio-piracy, Court case,