Policeman among two arrested with elephant tusks in Nairobi
Policeman among two arrested with elephant tusks in Nairobi
Cyrus Ombati, The Star
January 16, 2024
A police officer and a civilian were arrested while trying to sell 645
kilos of elephant tusks in the Eastleigh area, Nairobi.
The tusks would fetch about Sh60 million in the black market.
The police constable and a civilian had been arrested in Nairobi West and
Eastleigh with the cargo on Sunday.
They had tried to sell the trophies to Kenya Wildlife Service officials who
had posed as potential buyers.
Police said they have joined the probe to establish the source of the
trophies.
This is the latest such incident amid a campaign to address the menace of
poaching.
Two women were last week arrested with five pieces of elephant tusks that
weighed 111 kilos and were valued at Sh11 million in a village in Kwale
county.
They were nabbed with the trophies on January 6, 2024, at around 9 am in
the Majoreni area of Lungalunga subcounty within Kwale.
This happened as they sought a market for the trophies and approached
undercover officials.
They were charged before a Msambweni court for dealing in a wildlife trophy
of an endangered species.
Tima Omar Suya and Bahatisha Juma Said were jointly charged with dealing in
wildlife trophies of an endangered species without a permit or other lawful
exemptions, contrary to Section 92(2) as read with Section 105(1) of the
Wildlife Conservation and Management Act, 2013.
It is alleged that the two women concealed the wildlife trophies in sacks
and ferried them on board a motor vehicle without a permit.
Suya and Said were also charged with having wildlife trophies of an
endangered species without a permit or other lawful exemption, contrary to
Section 92(4) as read with Section 105(1) of the Wildlife Conservation and
Management Act, 2013.
Elephant tusks fetch a fortune in the black market as a surge in demand for
ivory in the East continues to fuel the illicit trade in elephant tusks,
especially from Africa.
Officials say despite a ban on the international ivory trade, African
elephants are still being poached in large numbers.
As part of efforts to stop the menace, Kenya has started using high-tech
surveillance equipment, including drones, to track poachers and keep tabs
on elephants and rhinos.
Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and stakeholders have put in place mechanisms
to eradicate all forms of wildlife crime, particularly poaching.
These mechanisms include enhanced community education, interagency
collaboration, and intensive intelligence-led operations, among others.
These efforts led to zero rhino poaching in Kenya in 2020-the first time in
about two decades. At least 20,000 elephants are killed annually in Africa
for their ivory.
This translates to 55 elephants killed daily or one elephant killed every
26 minutes with a population of 35,000 elephants.
On April 30, 2016, Kenya set ablaze 105 tonnes of elephant ivory and 1.35
tonnes of rhino horn.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta led world leaders and conservationists in
burning the remains of 6,500 elephants and 450 rhinos killed for their
tusks and horns.
Parliament has also passed strict anti-poaching laws and the government has
beefed up security at parks to stop poaching, which threatens the vital
tourism industry.
Regionally, Kenya has also emerged as a major transit route for ivory
destined for Asian markets from eastern and central Africa.
The illegal ivory trade is mostly fuelled by demand in Asia and the Middle
East, where elephant tusks and rhino horns are used to make ornaments and
traditional medicines.