Mystery man caught with a 2.3-metre long python jailed for two years – VIDEO
A man who was arrested on Tuesday night in possession of a python concealed in a black suitcase at the Likoni Ferry Channel crossing was has been jailed for two years.
The man had on Wednesday pleaded guilty but police were forced to hold the case because they believed he may have falsified his identity following his arrest.
The man had initially identified himself as Karissa Iha when he pleaded guilty in court, but the police later sought to be given one more day by the court to ascertain his real identity.
The police said the suspect did not have any form of identification but it was suspected his real name is Benedict Karissa Fondo.
Mombasa Resident Magistrate Vincent Adet granted the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) and the police a day to detain the suspect and establish his real identity.
The suspect faced charges of being in possession of a wildlife species without a permit in contravention of the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act (2013).
The Magistrate, while delivering the sentence, said that the suspect having worked with the Kenya Wildlife Service should have known that a permit was needed in such circumstances.
The suspect was fined Sh1 million or in default serve two years in prison.
Section 95 of the act forbids the dealing in wildlife trophy or manufacturing of items from wildlife trophy without a permit from the relevant authorities.
Convicted offenders are liable to a fine of not less than Sh1million or imprisonment for a term of not less than three years or both.
The magistrate ordered the 2.3-metre python weighing 10 kilograms to be surrendered to KWS in Mombasa county.
Snake species such as the African black python are regularly sold in the black market for their skin and meat.
In 2017, KWS effected a ban on exportation of various species of snakes.