"A Chinese national and his Kenyan co-accused appeared in a Nairobi court on Tuesday charged with illegal trade in live wildlife species, after authorities said they were found with thousands of live queen ants without the necessary export permits. "The first offence is dealing with live wildlife species without a permit and then there are other charges that have been added particularly the third charge that relates to conspiracy to commit a felony which carries a sentence of up to 7 years imprisonment," said David Namai, lawyer for the Chinese national Zhang Kequn. Kequn and Kenyan national Charles Mwangi pleaded not guilty before Senior Principal Magistrate Irene Gichobi at the JKIA Law Courts. "Both accused persons have pleaded not guilty to the offence because this offence of conspiracy is much heavier and also requires a lot of proof from the prosecution," Namai added. Prosecutors said the pair were arrested on March 10, 2026, in possession of approximately 2,000 ants stored in test tubes, with hundreds more concealed in tissue rolls. Authorities allege the insects were being traded without the required permits, in what officials describe as a growing illegal market. According to the prosecution, Zhang allegedly purchased the ants from Mwangi at a price of 100 Kenyan shillings each. The seized specimens were presented in court as evidence, while Zhang shielded his face from view."