Three people were arrested on Friday, September 20 along Tana River County’s Garsen Witu Road with 85.7 kilos of elephant tusks valued Sh8 million.
According to the Kenya Wildlife Service authorities the three, including a woman, were carrying two elephant tusks that had been chopped into pieces and placed in two sacks.
Police stated the suspects were hiding the tusks in a bush while waiting for a potential customer when they were nabbed.
They were arrested and taken to Garsen police station for grilling ahead of planned arraignment on Monday.
Police said the suspects 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 an elephant had been killed and there is a likelihood the incident happened in the nearby parks.
Elephant tusks fetch a fortune in the black market as a surge in demand for ivory in the East continues to fuel the illicit trade in elephant tusks, especially from Africa.
Officials say despite a ban on the international ivory trade, African elephants are still being poached in large numbers.
As part of efforts to stop the menace, Kenya has started using high-tech surveillance equipment, including drones, to track poachers and keep tabs on elephants and rhinos.
KWS and stakeholders have put in place mechanisms to eradicate all forms of wildlife crime, particularly poaching.
These mechanisms include enhanced community education, interagency collaboration, and intensive intelligence-led operations, among others.
These efforts led to zero rhino poaching in Kenya in 2020-the first time in about two decades.
