Ex British Soldier Accused of Killing Kenyan Female Appears in Court

A man has shown up before a judge as extradition hearings commenced in the investigation of the victim Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan woman who was found dead near a British army base in 2012.

Robert Purkiss, thirty-eight, who is hailing from Greater Manchester region, showed up in the Westminster court on Friday, and told the court he planned to fight the extradition request. Reports indicate that he was arrested on the evening of Thursday.

An arrest warrant for the defendant was released by a Kenyan court in Nairobi in September. The prosecution informed the Kenyan judiciary that Purkiss had been accused of a one count, of killing, and that the Kenyan government would seek his extradition to answer to accusations.

He previously worked as a medic with the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, the army unit for the north-west of England, including on missions to Afghanistan.

The victim, 21 years old, a beautician who had a infant daughter, went missing after a night out, and her body was discovered after two months in the premises of the lodging where she had previously spotted.

Nobody had earlier been detained or accused in relation to her death. His detention came after a recent detective probe, which followed a report in the year 2021 by a Sunday newspaper, in which the newspaper approached several active and retired troops in the military group.

The investigation has been headed by detectives in Kenya, which, under a mutual defense pact, maintains prosecutorial power in the case.