MOMBASA, Kenya, July 30 -- Kenya on Tuesday nabbed 35 pieces of ivory tusks worth 18 million Kenyan shillings (180,000 U.S. dollars) at a village in Kenya's coastal region.

The anti-poaching police who had received a tip-off from members of the public set a trap and disguised as buyers before arresting two suspects who had concealed the ivory in sacks and buried them underground.

"Today at about 5 am in the morning, we did joint operation involving KWS (Kenya Wildlife Service) and National Police Service from Rabai and managed to recover the consignment," Rabai Sub-County police commander David Maina told Xinhua.

Police used sniffer dogs to recover the haul, about 20 km from where police nabbed 11 pieces of ivory weighing 55 kg in December 2018.

John Chisiwa Ngoma and Mwauchi Mgaza were arrested as they tried to sell the ivory to the officers as two other suspects escaped the dragnet. The two will be arraigned in court on Wednesday.

"Upon interrogation they told us that they had just bumped on the consignment and they were trying to find out what it was. But that is a lie," Maina added.

He said that the dealers were targeting local buyers who would organize for brokers who sell the ivory to international markets.

Police believe the ivory might have been poached from Tsavo National Park, which hosts the largest population of elephants in Kenya.