Massive wildlife trophy haul found in dead Chinese man's apartment in Kenyan capital

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) – Police in Kenya recovered an assortment of wildlife trophies from the apartment of a Chinese man found dead “under mysterious circumstances.”

The items include “78 pieces of elephant ivory, two rhino horns, a big electric saw, 65 pieces of lion teeth, 160 pieces of lion claws, two pieces of ivory sculptures, and a skin of an unknown animal,” according to a police statement issued late on Wednesday.

Police were called to the apartment in Lavington, an affluent suburb of the capital Nairobi, by neighbors.

Officials said Yang Changgui, a Chinese national, was found dead in the house but the cause of death remains uncertain.

The deceased had “a fresh surgery scar on his pelvis” and prescription medicines were found in the house, the statement said.

Business stamps, loose bank checks, checkbooks, and phones were also recovered.

Wildlife crime has become increasingly organized in Kenya with criminal networks forging links across countries and continents, according to WildlifeDirect, a charity group registered in Kenya and the US.

“The transnational nature of such criminal activity has evolved and diversified with links that include human migrant exploitation, money laundering, arms and drug trafficking, among others,” the group warned in a recent report.​​​​​​​