A Kitale court has slapped a 46-year-old man with a fine of Sh1 million with or a one-year jail term for being in possession of two pieces of ivory tusks.
Martin Mukesa Juma appeared before Chief Magistrate Julius N’garng’ar on Wednesday and was charged of being in possession of ivory tusk pieces without permit contrary to Section 95 of the Penal Code.
The accused was charged that on April 10, 2020 at Kenya Wildlife Service in Kipsongo area within Trans Nzoia County, he was arrested with the game trophy pieces weighing 4 kilograms and valued at Sh400, 000 without a permit from the Directorate of Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).
In his defense, Juma dismissed the charges leveled against him and instead claimed that the pieces of ivory tusks belonged to a KWS officer that arrested him.
Juma told the court that on the date of his arrest, he had received a lift by a KWS vehicle, which had the pieces of ivory tusks among other unnamed cargo.
The accused further claimed the said vehicle had three occupants and wondered why the other two were not arrested.
But in his ruling, the Chief Magistrate said the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.
“I do reject and dismiss the defense raised by the accused, consequently the court finds the accused guilty of being in possession of the game trophy without a permit contrary to Section 95 of Wildlife Conservation and Management Act. He is therefore convicted as charged,” ruled Ng’arng’ar.
The Chief Magistrate regretted what he termed as members of the public’s intentional ignorance over the government measures aimed at safeguarding and conserving wildlife ecosystems and warned of dire penalties to anyone found in illegal possession of game trophies.
According to the Revised 2019 Constitution, No. 47 of 2013, Wildlife Conservation and Management Act 95, any person who, without a permit or exemption granted under the Act in relation to a species not specified under section 92, kills or injures, tortures or molests, or attempts to kill or injure, any wildlife species, deals in a wildlife trophy, deals in a live wildlife species, is in possession of a wildlife trophy or or manufactures an item from a wildlife trophy, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of not less than one million shillings or a term of imprisonment of not less than twelve months or to both such fine and imprisonment.
