Citizen News

January 22, 2013

Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) wardens have confiscated two elephant tusks valued at more than Sh 4 million at Kacheliba in West Pokot County.

The officers seized the tusks that weighed about 100 Kilograms from two armed poachers who managed to escape from KWS rangers.

Area KWS Assistant Director Mr. Daniel Onsembe said the origin of the tusks had not been established but said they could have been from DRC Congo owing to their extra large size and weight.

The officer further said that poaching cases had risen and that that particular region had not been left out due to the high demand for the commodity in Asian countries.

He said he has convened a meeting with police and custom officers at border points in the Western Kenya region to put in place measures that will curb the smuggling of Ivory into and from the country.

The region has a total population of about 1, 000 elephants at Nasolot and Mt. Elgon Game Parks.

Poaching of Africa's elephants have accelerated in the last several years.

This comes a few weeks after a family of 12 elephants were shot dead by poachers in the Tsavo National Park.