Two people including a member of the National Police Reserve were Wednesday (June 19th, 2024) arrested while trafficking two elephant tusks along Eldama Ravine-Eldoret Road, Baringo County.

 

Police said the two were arrested near Kaptagat Forest with the tusks weighing 14 kilos and valued at Sh1.4 million.

 

They were on a motorcycle when they were intercepted as they ferried the tusks to a buyer in the area in the June 19 incident.

 

Police said the two were marked people in the illegal business. Police said the suspect will be charged with the offence of being in Possession of Wildlife Trophies of Endangered Species Contrary to Section 92(4) of the Wildlife Conservation Management Act 2013.

 

Officials said the seizure shows up to one elephant had been killed and there is a likelihood the incidents happened in the nearby parks.

 

Last Saturday, a police officer attached to the Presidential Escort Unit and another to Kapseret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi were among four people who were arrested after being found in possession of five elephant tusks, two pistols and 30 bullets.

 

The other two were another officer attached to Milimani Law Courts and a civilian and were arrested in Kitengela, Kajiado County.

 

The five tusks are said to weigh 29 kilograms, all worth Sh2.9 million.

 

Police said the suspects were on the Kenya Wildlife Services officers’ radar who aided their arrest.

 

The suspects were trailed from Eldoret to Nairobi, and later to Kitengela where the arrest took place.

 

The four were arrested by officers attached to Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) at a roadblock in Kitengela, officials said.

 

The suspects are said to have drawn their pistols during their arrest but were subdued.

 

They have since been produced in court. Two weeks ago, three suspected poachers were arrested and eight pieces of elephant tusks valued at Sh2 million recovered from their car in Kibwezi, Makueni County.

 

The three were in a car along the Nairobi-Mombasa highway at Thenge area, when police officers intercepted it.

 

The tusks weighed about 20 kilos, police and Kenya Wildlife Service officials said of the June 4 incident.

 

The tusks were detained at the KWS Chyuklu Hills National Park office…………………AI garbage