Director of Public Prosecutions Renson Ingonga has called for stronger international cooperation and intelligence sharing to dismantle sophisticated criminal networks behind wildlife trafficking, warning that the illegal trade is increasingly linked to corruption, money laundering and organized crime.

Ingonga said wildlife trafficking had evolved into a complex transnational criminal enterprise that exploits digital platforms, encrypted communications, electronic payment systems and legitimate cargo channels to move illegal animal products across borders.

He was speaking in Nairobi during the opening of the 10th Wildlife Inter-regional Enforcement Conference, organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in partnership with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP).

The three-day conference brought together investigators, prosecutors, customs officers and wildlife authorities from different countries, including Sri Lanka’s Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe, to strengthen cross-border enforcement and cooperation.

Ingonga said the fight against wildlife crime should go beyond counting seized animal products to addressing the destruction of ecosystems, loss of biodiversity and the criminal networks that profit from environmental degradation.

“Behind every seizure lies a larger story. There is an animal removed from its habitat, a community deprived of its natural heritage, and often a criminal enterprise profiting from both,” he said.

Citing UNODC findings, the DPP revealed that more than 140,000 wildlife seizures were recorded in 162 countries and territories between 2015 and 2021, involving approximately 4,000 species.

He noted that the illegal trade was no longer confined to high-profile species such as elephants and rhinoceroses but also targeted reptiles, rare plants and marine species, threatening entire ecosystems.

The DPP said Kenya was committed to protecting its natural heritage, citing the constitutional guarantee of every person’s right to a clean and healthy environment.

He highlighted the work of Kenyan investigators, wildlife officers and prosecutors in pursuing cases involving elephant ivory, pangolins and fraudulent wildlife documentation.

Ingonga pointed to a December 2025 operation involving authorities in Singapore and South Africa, which uncovered a shipment containing 55.4 kilograms of rhinoceros horns and other animal parts in Johannesburg, leading to arrests.

He said the operation demonstrated the importance of timely intelligence sharing and coordinated investigations in preventing traffickers from exploiting international borders.

“Information must move across borders before criminals do,” he said, urging countries to strengthen cooperation and establish trusted channels for exchanging intelligence.

He warned that traffickers were increasingly exploiting technology to conceal their activities, including using encrypted communications, manipulating permits and deploying electronic payment systems to move proceeds from illegal wildlife trade.

To counter the emerging threats, Ingonga called for investigations that combine digital evidence, wildlife forensics, financial intelligence and early involvement of prosecutors.

He said authorities must target not only those caught transporting illegal wildlife products but also the financiers, organizers and corrupt facilitators who sustain the criminal networks.

The DPP also raised concerns over biopiracy, describing it as the exploitation of genetic resources and traditional knowledge without proper consent or fair sharing of benefits.

He cited concerns over biological resources collected from Lake Bogoria and allegedly commercialized without adequate benefit sharing, as well as disputes surrounding patents linked to the traditional uses of India’s neem tree.

However, he cautioned against treating every disputed patent as a criminal offence, stressing the need to distinguish biopiracy from wildlife trafficking and protect legitimate scientific research.

He said international frameworks, including the Nagoya Protocol and evolving intellectual property standards, provided important guidelines for ensuring consent, proper documentation and equitable benefit sharing.

Ingonga said the ODPP would continue strengthening prosecution-guided investigations, evidence management, wildlife forensic capabilities and mutual legal assistance in cross-border cases.

He further called for effective application of asset restraint, confiscation and forfeiture laws to deprive criminal networks of the proceeds of wildlife trafficking.

According to the DPP, successful prosecutions require close collaboration between investigators, prosecutors, conservation agencies and international law enforcement partners.

He urged conference participants to develop practical mechanisms for cooperation, including intelligence-sharing arrangements, professional networks and faster processing of mutual legal assistance requests.

Ingonga said the conference should produce concrete enforcement strategies capable of disrupting wildlife trafficking networks before they move illegal products and proceeds across jurisdictions.

“Our wildlife is not an inexhaustible commodity. It is part of our inheritance and a responsibility we hold for generations yet to come,” he said.

He added that prosecuting wildlife crimes was essential not only to protecting endangered species but also to demonstrating that the law could reach individuals and organizations profiting from environmental destruction.

 by Joseph Ng’ang’a