Il Fatto Quotidiano: Nascondeva oltre oltre 2000 formiche “regine” in valigia: l’incredibile scoperta ai controlli in aeroporto. La polizia: “C’è una rete di trafficanti di questi insetti usati come animali domestici”

Se avete visto il programma televisivo Airport Security, saprete che negli aeroporti possono capitare ritrovamenti incredibili, dalla droga agli oggetti più assurdi. Ma Zhang Kequn, cittadino cinese, ha portato il concetto di insolito a un livello tutto suo: all’aeroporto internazionale Jomo Kenyatta di Nairobi, è stato arrestato dopo essere stato fermato con oltre 2000 formiche “regine” nel bagaglio, destinate alla Cina. Un traffico tanto insolito quanto illegale.
L’uomo non ha ancora fornito spiegazioni ufficiali, ma gli investigatori ritengono che possa essere collegato a una rete di traffico di formiche smantellata lo scorso anno in Kenya. Le formiche, protette dai trattati internazionali sulla biodiversità, rientrano in una categoria di specie il cui commercio è severamente regolamentato, proprio per prevenire danni agli ecosistemi locali.
Negli ultimi anni, il Kenya Wildlife Service ha segnalato una crescente richiesta di formiche da giardino, scientificamente note come Messor cephalotes, soprattutto in Europa e Asia. Qui i collezionisti le allevano come animali domestici, e fanno di un insetto minuscolo in un bene ambito e redditizio. Questo boom ha alimentato un mercato nero pericoloso, spesso nascosto in valigie o spedizioni internazionali.
Precedenti giudiziari
Non è il primo caso del genere nel Paese. Lo scorso maggio, un tribunale keniano ha condannato quattro uomini, due belgi, un vietnamita e un cittadino locale, a un anno di carcere per aver tentato di esportare migliaia di formiche regine. Un caso senza precedenti, che aveva già messo in luce quanto il contrabbando di insetti protetti possa assumere contorni paradossali ma gravi sul piano legale e ambientale.
L'articolo Nascondeva oltre oltre 2000 formiche “regine” in valigia: l’incredibile scoperta ai controlli in aeroporto. La polizia: “C’è una rete di trafficanti di questi insetti usati come animali domestici” proviene da Il Fatto Quotidiano.

He was concealing over 2,000 “queen” ants in a suitcase: the incredible discovery during airport checks. The police: “There is a network of traffickers who use these insects as pets.”

If you’ve seen the television show Airport Security, you’ll know that incredible finds can happen at airports, from drugs to the most absurd objects. But Zhang Kequn, a Chinese citizen, took the concept of the unusual to another level: at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, he was arrested after being caught with over 2000 “queen” ants in his luggage, destined for China. Such an unusual and illegal traffic.

The man has not yet provided official explanations, but investigators believe he may be linked to a trafficking network of ants dismantled last year in Kenya. The ants, protected by international biodiversity treaties, fall into a category of species whose trade is strictly regulated, precisely to prevent damage to local ecosystems.

In recent years, the Kenya Wildlife Service has reported a growing demand for garden ants, scientifically known as Messor cephalotes, especially in Europe and Asia. Here, collectors breed them as pets, and turn a tiny insect into a coveted and profitable asset. This boom has fueled a dangerous black market, often hidden in suitcases or international shipments.

Previous Court Cases

It’s not the first case of its kind in the country. Last May, a Kenyan court sentenced four men, two Belgians, a Vietnamese man, and a local citizen, to a year in prison for attempting to export thousands of queen ants. An unprecedented case that had already highlighted how the smuggling of protected insects can take paradoxical but serious legal and environmental contours.

The article “It Concealed Over 2000 ‘Queen’ Ants in a Suitcase: The Incredible Discovery at Airport Checks” comes from Il Fatto Quotidiano.

#AirportSecurity #ZhangKequn #Chinese #Nairobi #China #Kenya #Messor #Europe #first #Kenyan #Belgians #Vietnamese #ItConcealedOver2000 #Suitcase #IlFattoQuotidiano

https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2026/03/12/nascondeva-oltre-oltre-2000-formiche-regine-in-valigia-lincredibile-scoperta-ai-controlli-in-aeroporto-la-polizia-ce-una-rete-di-trafficanti-di-questi-insetti-usati-come-ani/8321963/

Congregation of the Holy Spirit

Officially known as: the Congregation of the Holy Spirit under the protection of the Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mary. Or in Latin: Congregatio Beatissimae Virginis Mariae.

This is a religious congregation for men in the Catholic Church. Members are known as Holy Ghost Fathers. Or in continental Europe, & the Anglosphere, as Spiritans. Members use the postnominals: CSSp. Postnominals are letters placed after a person’s name to signify academic degrees, professional qualifications, awards, military decorations, or honorific titles (like PhD).

The order began in Paris on Pentecost Sunday, 1703. Claude Poullart des Places was a wealthy young lawyer who abandoned his social standing to become a priest. He wanted to form a religious institute for young men who wanted to become priests but were too poor to do so.

Unlike orders that focused on the elite, Claude was moved by the plight of “poor scholars.” HIs vision was a “proletariat” clergy. Priests assignments in hospitals, rural parishes, & overseas missions.

Claude was born on February 26, 1679 in the capital city of Brittany, France: Rennes. Claude was tutored at home before being enrolled at the age of 9-10 as a day student in the nearby Jesuit college of St. Thomas. Thus beginning his lifelong association with the Society of Jesus.

Graduating at 16, Claude studied at the University of Caen, Normandy. Before graduating at 22, with a Licentiate in Law from the Law School of Nantes. A licentiate in law is an individual holding an academic degree or professional certification. This is usually below a doctorate but above a bachelor’s, that authorizes them to practice law.

In 1701, Claude Poullart began his studies for the priesthood, as a boarder at the Jesuit College in Paris. His work grew quickly. The Order developed. However, Claude passed away at 29, or 31 depending on the source, of pleurisy after founding the order.

After the founder’s death, the order became fully organized. In 1765, the South American missions, in colonies such as China, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand (Siam), & India under the support of the Paris Foreign missionaries arrived in Senegal, Africa.

Those in France served in various dioceses or alongside the de Montfont missionaries. This was due to the close friendship between Poullart & Louis de Montfont. The Order had trained 1,300 priests in the years leading up to 1792, when the seminary was suppressed by the French Revolution. The French Revolution saw the Spiritans have their property seized & many were executed or exiled to England, Italy, & Switzerland.

After the French Revolution only 1 member remained, James Bertout. He survived a series of hardships like being shipwrecked on his way to his destined mission in French Guiana, enslaved by the Moors, & a short stay in Senegal (where he had been sold to the English).

On his return to France, he reestablished the Order & continued its work. But he found it VERY hard to recover sufficiently from the effects caused by the Revolution.

In 1841/1842, Francis Liberman founded the Society of the Holy Heart of Mary (a.k.a. Society of the Immaculate Heart of Mary) This society is/was dedicated to serve mainly the emancipated black slaves in the French colonies. Particularly in Africa & the Caribbean.

In 1848, the Holy See asked Liberman to merge his relatively new society with the struggling Congregation of the Holy Spirit. Lieberman was made the 1st Superior General of the united groups. This effectively saving the Spiritan name & legacy.

Liberman’s approach to missionary work was revolutionary from the time. He instructed his missionaries not to “Europeanize” the people they served. Besides the missions in Africa, the society started missions in Mauritius, Reunion, & the Rodriguez Islands. In the Western Hemisphere, they had missions in Trinidad, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Haiti, & Amazonia.

The Spiritans arrived in the United States in 1972, fleeing the Kulturkampf (persecution of Catholics) in Germany. They found a home in industrial heartlands, particularly Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The Order is known in the United States for founding Duquesne University in 1878. This university was originally established to provide an education to the kids of poor immigrants working in the steel mills. It grew into a major research institution. The university’s motto (Spiritus est qui vivificat, “It is the Spirit who gives life”) reflects the order’s charism.

By the early 20th century the organization into the following provinces: France, Ireland, Portugal, United States of America, & Germany.

On December 31, 1961, 20 Spiritans: 19 Belgians & 1 Dutch man, were unalived in Kongolo (in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) by government troops during the Katanga Secession Rebellion.

In Rome, on April 24, 1979, Pope John Paul II presided over the beautification ceremony for Jacques-Desire Laval. The 1st member of the Spiritans to be honored.

Today, there are about 3,000 Spiritans serving in over 60 countries. They’re often associated with schools & chaplaincy, & missionary work.

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