A 37-year-old Chinese national and a Kenyan man have been charged at the Jomo Kenyatta International Law Court for dealing in live wildlife species, following the discovery of thousands of live ants allegedly being traded without permits.
Zhang Kequn and Charles Mwangi, 35, were charged on Tuesday 17th March, 2026, with dealing in live wildlife species and conspiracy to commit a felony, following a series of incidents between March 10 and 13, 2026.
Prosecution Counsels John Tago and Mercy Katsivo told the court that on March 10, 2026, the two were found in possession of 1,948 garden ants packaged in specialised tubes and 300 live ants packed in tissue rolls, all without a permit.
Mwangi faced an additional charge stemming from a separate incident on March 13, 2026, in Gilgil town, where he was found with 1,000 live ants in a pink basin, 113 garden ants stashed in specialised syringes, and 503 empty syringes in a white sack, again without a permit.
The two were jointly charged with conspiracy to commit a felony, with the court hearing that they had conspired to deal in live garden ants across multiple dates.
Both pleaded not guilty before Senior Principal Magistrate Irene Gichobi.
Evidence presented indicated that Kequn had been purchasing the live ants from Mwangi at Ksh 100 per ant, paying Ksh 60,000 for an initial batch of 600 ants and a further Ksh 70,000 for an additional 700 ants.
The DPP opposed Kequn’s release on bond, arguing that he poses a flight risk.
He arrived in Kenya on February 27, 2026, on a tourist visa and has no fixed address in the country.
The case will be mentioned on March 27, 2026.
