A Chinese man was arrested in Kenya this week, accused of attempting to smuggle more than 2,200 live garden ants in his luggage.
Suspect Zhang Kequn was arrested at the country’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport Tuesday, according to Reuters. On Wednesday, a Kenyan prosecutor told a court that Mr. Kequn had “1,948 garden ants packed in specialized test tubes,” with another 300 being kept in rolls of tissue paper, according to the BBC.
The garden ant, known scientifically as Messor cephalotes, is sought after by collectors that keep them as pets.
Investigators allege that Mr. Kequn was working with three accomplices and that he had been in Kenya as part of the operation for two weeks, according to Reuters.
The court is allowing Kenyan law enforcement to detain Mr. Kequn so that detectives can investigate further, according to the BBC.
Mr. Kequn is also accused of overseeing another scheme to smuggle out ants last year. Two Belgian teens were arrested in April 2025 with 5,000 ants, and after being convicted were given the choice of paying a $7,700 fine or serving a year in prison, according to The Associated Press.
Another two men in a separate but related case, one a Kenyan and the other a Vietnamese national, were given the same choice between the fine and prison time after being caught with 400 ants, according to the AP.
Mr. Kequn, however, got away at the time without being arrested, and a stop order was subsequently put on his passport, according to Reuters.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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