Africa ‘taking a stand’ in war to save elephants
THE ARREST of a man alleged to be Kenya’s most active smuggler has been hailed by conservationists as the beginning of the end for the ivory cartels that have threatened elephants with extinction.
Feisal Mohamed Ali, 47, had been on the run since June, when a police raid in the port city of Mombasa uncovered 228 tusks and more than 74 pieces of worked ivory worth at least NZ$1.4 million He was detained in neighbouring Tanzania late on Tuesday, two months after Interpol issued a red notice for his arrest.
‘‘It is a huge celebration for us,’’ said Paula Kahumbu, the head of the charity Wildlife Direct, which helped to organise a petition demanding Ali’s arrest.
Kahumbu said the arrest sent a message that ‘‘having friends in high places’’ was no longer a guarantee of evading the law.
‘‘He managed to skip the country and, without co-ordinated police action, he could have kept hiding,’’ she said.
Kenyan police arrested two men, including a security guard, at the scene of the Mombasa raid, but were accused by conservation groups of letting the kingpins roam free, despite widespread fears that poaching is driving Africa’s elephants to extinction.
Interpol said Ali, who was originally from the Kenyan island of Lamu, was wanted by the authorities for ‘‘dealing in wildlife trophies’’ but local officials said they suspected that he was a leading player in a regional trafficking syndicate that smuggles ivory to China.
‘‘This is a demonstration of cooperation across east Africa against wildlife crime,’’ Kahumbu said. ‘‘It is the beginning of the end of the cartels that have been really threatening our elephants. It is Africa taking a stand.’’
Ali was the only person arrested in Tanzania and no ivory was recovered at the scene, said Vitalis Okumu, the head of Interpol in Kenya.
‘‘He was arrested by Interpol officers, following successful leads,’’ Vitalis said. ‘‘He is now in detention, waiting to be brought to face various environmental and wildlife charges.’’
Police said that the first raid, on a warehouse in Changamwe, had been carried out after a tipoff. The warehouse is less than 2 kilometres from the Indian ocean port, as well as the city’s international airport.
Officials said that the 228 elephant tusks recovered in the police raid in June had not been concealed, but had been found next to wooden packing crates. It is believed that the consignment was due to be smuggled to China, which is the world’s largest market for illegal elephant ivory.