Chinese national arrested over attempt to smuggle 2,000 queen ants from Kenya
BBC | 03 11 2026 | Wycliffe MuiaA Chinese national has been arrested in Kenya’s main airport accused of attempting to smuggle more than 2,000 queen garden ants out of the country.
Zhang Kequn was intercepted during a security check at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in the capital Nairobi after authorities discovered a large consignment of live ants in his luggage bound for China.
He has yet to respond to the accusation but investigators said in court that he was linked to an ant-trafficking network that was broken up in Kenya last year.
The ants are protected by international bio-diversity treaties and their trade is highly regulated.
… in Europe and Asia, where collectors keep them as pets.
A state prosecutor told the court on Wednesday that Zhang had packed some ants in test tubes, while others were concealed in tissue paper rolls hidden in his luggage.
Maybe he was actually smuggling in tissue paper, and this was a diversion.
What kind of international trafficking laws did I violate by purchasing that Ant Farm all those years ago? And is there a statute of limitations??
I have a Queen Ant. He used to be my Uncle Murry.
It was just a light snack for the trip.
Maybe the ants were actually going to be delivered to Little Rocket Man for torture purposes. He just threw one of his (bleeding) generals into a water tank full of piranhas. True story not a joke.
I tried to find info on why anyone would want ants. I gave up scrolling through the search results because EVERY link was to a story about the arrest. I finally added “Wikipedia” to the search words to actually get to something that provided some information. So i was able to find this.
“Messor cephalotes is popular with collectors due to its behavior. They can build complex colonies in a formicarium. Additionally, they are also effective pest controllers, for example in greenhouses.[3]”
“Messor cephalotes is distributed across East Africa, particularly in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania. It inhabits arid and semi-arid environments and is well adapted to the tropical climate of the region.[3]”
“Messor cephalotes is the largest known species of harvester ant in the world. Native to East Africa, it is found in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania. The species is known for its impressive size and complex social structure.”
“At the black market they are sold for up to 200 Euro each.[5]”
But of course everyone knows.
For 199.99 Euros you get two Messor cephalotes, known as the James Brown Starter Pack. Buy now and save!!!
Where was Scott Lang when this was going on?
I hear the Indian aunts are the hottest
It’s all fun and games until the alpha uncles take off their little black turbans and start going full turbo charged into the aunts. 🐜
And then it’s just fun.