Former UK Serviceman Accused of Killing Kenya Woman Shows Up in Courtroom

An individual has appeared in court as extradition proceedings commenced in the case of Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan national, a Kenyan woman who was found dead near a UK military installation in the year 2012.

The accused Robert Purkiss, 38 years old, who is a native of Greater Manchester, appeared before the Westminster court on Friday, and informed the court he planned to fight the deportation. It is understood that he was detained on the evening of Thursday.

A detention order for the suspect was issued by a court in Nairobi in September. The prosecution stated before the Kenyan court that the accused had been accused of a one count, of homicide, and that the Kenyan authorities would seek his extradition to stand trial.

He served formerly as a army medic with the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, the military regiment for the English northwest, including on deployments in Afghanistan.

The victim, 21 years old, a hairdresser who had a baby daughter, went missing after a night out, and her body was discovered two months later in the grounds of the hotel where she had previously spotted.

No one had before been detained or indicted in association with her demise. His detention came after a fresh police investigation, which came after a report in 2021 by the Sunday Times, in which the newspaper approached several current and former soldiers in the military group.

This inquiry has been spearheaded by detectives in Kenya, which, under a bilateral defence agreement, holds legal authority in the legal case.