Elephant activist urges Kenya police to arrest suspected ivory trafficker

NAIROBI, Kenya – A conservationist is urging Kenya's police to arrest what her group says is the "ivory kingpin" of Kenya.

Wildlife Direct chief executive Paula Kahumbu on Tuesday delivered a petition with nearly 400 signatures on it to Kenya's inspector general of police. The petition urges the arrest of Feizal Ali Mohamed, whom Wildlife Direct alleges is a Mombasa-based businessman evading an arrest warrant in relation to a massive ivory seizure in June.

Animal rights activists have labeled Tuesday as World Elephant Day, a day to spread awareness of the critical threats that elephants face. Demand for ivory from China and Asia have led to the slaughter of tens of thousands of elephants by poachers in Africa in recent years, and animal activists fear the killings could lead to extinction.