Redeeming news for teens in ant trial

The Flemish boys David (19) and Seppe (18) have been given a second chance by the Kenyan judge. He sentenced them only to a fine of one million Kenyan shillings (about 7,000 euros) and they avoid imprisonment. As soon as this fine is paid, they will be allowed to leave Kenya.

"There is no justification whatsoever for having 5,000 queen ants in your possession. But they deserve a second chance to do better", the judge said forgivingly on Wednesday.

The teenagers from the region of Mol in the Belgian Kempen had been in jail since early April in Kenya awaiting the verdict in their trial. They tried to take ants to Belgium. These special queen ants are worth up to 200 euros each, and the Belgian teenagers paid just a few thousand euros for the animals in Kenya. It seems they wanted to smuggle the ants illegally to Belgium, then sell them for several times the price on the black market. But it is not allowed at all to catch, keep or trade this protected species. In 2,244 tubes, a total of about 5,000 ants were discovered. The tubes contained cotton wool to keep the ants damp during transport.

The Kenyan court gave the Belgian youths a second chance.

(SR - Source: Het Nieuwsblad/GVA/Kenya Wildlife Service - Illustration image: ©Unsplash)