Kenyan court sentences ant smugglers to $7,700 fine or one-year in prison

The four suspects – two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan – were arrested last month with 5,000 ants.

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The four suspects – two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan – were arrested last month with live ants suspected to have been destined for collectors in Europe and Asia.

They had pleaded guilty to the charges, with the Belgians telling the court that they were collecting the highly sought-after ants as a hobby and didn't think it was illegal.

But delivering the sentence on Wednesday, the judge said the particular species of ants collected was valuable and they had thousands of them — not just a few.

"While collecting a few ants might be considered a hobby, being found with 5,000 queen ants is beyond a hobby," said Magistrate Njeri Thuku.