Former British Serviceman Accused of Murdering Kenya Woman Shows Up in Court

A suspect has appeared in court as extradition proceedings began in the legal matter of Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan national, a female from Kenya who was found dead near a British army base in 2012.

The accused Robert Purkiss, 38, who is a native of Greater Manchester region, was presented at the magistrates' court in Westminster on Friday, and told the court he would challenge the extradition. Sources suggest that he was detained on Thursday evening.

An arrest warrant for Purkiss was authorized by a Nairobi court in the month of September. The prosecution told the Kenyan court that Purkiss had been facing a one count, of homicide, and that the Kenyan government would seek his extradition to stand trial.

The defendant previously worked as a medical attendant with the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, the army unit for the English northwest, including on tours of Afghanistan.

The victim, 21, a hairdresser who had a baby daughter, vanished after a evening out, and her remains was found after two months in the area of the accommodation where she had most recently observed.

Not a single person had before been detained or indicted in association with her passing. The arrest of Purkiss followed a new police inquiry, which was initiated after a article in 2021 by a weekly publication, in which the media outlet reached out to several current and former soldiers in the military group.

This inquiry has been headed by detectives in Kenya, which, under a bilateral defence agreement, retains jurisdiction in the legal case.