Former British Serviceman Accused of Killing Kenya Female Appears in Court

A suspect has shown up before a judge as extradition proceedings began in the case of Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan woman who was murdered near a British army base in 2012.

The accused Robert Purkiss, 38, who is a native of Greater Manchester region, showed up in the Westminster court on the last Friday, and told the court he would challenge the extradition. Sources suggest that he was taken into custody on Thursday night.

An arrest warrant for the suspect was released by a Nairobi court in September. The state attorneys informed the Kenyan judiciary that the individual had been accused of a single count, of murder, and that the government of Kenya would pursue his extradition to face charges.

He previously worked as a army medic with the regiment of the Duke of Lancaster, the infantry regiment for the English northwest, including on deployments in Afghanistan.

Wanjiru, 21 years old, a hairdresser who had a infant daughter, went missing after a night out, and her remains was found after two months in the area of the accommodation where she had previously spotted.

No one had earlier been detained or indicted in connection to her demise. His detention came after a recent detective probe, which came after a article in the year 2021 by a Sunday newspaper, in which the publication reached out to several current and former soldiers in the unit.

The investigation has been spearheaded by Kenyan detectives, which, under a mutual defense pact, retains jurisdiction in the matter.