Police have arrested three people in Laikipia county after finding them with six pieces of elephant tusks during a raid conducted jointly by officers from Jikaze Police Post and the Kenya Wildlife Service on June 23, 2026.
The suspects were nabbed in what authorities say is part of wider efforts to fight the illegal wildlife trade that continues to threaten Kenya's natural heritage.
According to the National Police Service, the tusks recovered during the operation have since been secured as court exhibits. The suspects are currently in police custody as they wait to be arraigned in court, where they will face charges related to possession of illegal wildlife trophies.
The recoveries from this operation add to a growing list of seizures being made across the country as security agencies step up their war against poachers and wildlife traffickers.
Just days before this arrest, another suspect was picked up in a similar operation. On June 17, a 58-year-old man was charged after being found with wildlife trophies that weighed about 18.5 kilogrammes and were valued at around two million shillings.
The man was arrested in Isebania, Kuria West Sub-County, following an intelligence-led operation that was conducted on June 13 at Kumumwamu. Officers from the Kenya Wildlife Service nabbed him with five cut pieces of elephant tusks and a hippopotamus tooth that was wrapped in a sack.
These arrests come at a time when conservation officials say that the demand for wildlife trophies remains dangerously high on the black market. Elephant tusks in particular fetch very high prices from illegal buyers, and this continues to fuel smuggling networks that operate across East Africa.
The National Police Service has warned that poaching remains a serious threat to Kenya's wildlife heritage, as it destroys endangered species, disrupts ecosystems, and undermines conservation work that supports tourism and local communities.
Police say they will keep working closely with the Kenya Wildlife Service and other partner agencies to dismantle the criminal networks involved in poaching and trafficking. The service also called on members of the public to support these efforts by reporting any suspicious activities to their nearest police stations.
Authorities urged people to remain vigilant and speak up if they notice anything that looks like illegal wildlife trading happening in their neighbourhoods.
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