Three Kenyans have been charged with trying to export ants worth 300,000 Kenyan Shillings ($2,135) to China and France without authority from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS)
Couple Martin Nyota and Rose Wairimu, as well as Eunice Muthoni, were sentenced at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) court on Monday.
The couple, who were apprehended at their home in Gilgil, Kenya's Nakuru County, entered a plea of not guilty to five charges related to dealing with the wildlife species of Messor cephalotes harvester ants.
Muthoni, who works for the postal service, was charged with aiding in the ants' unlawful export.
The ants are intended to be released to the National Museum of Kenya for research purposes, as stated by the officials.
The specific purpose of exporting the ants remained unclear.
Following their court appearance, Muthoni and Wairimu were granted release on bail of 50,000 Kenyan Shillings ($356).