Former British Soldier Charged of Killing Kenya Woman Appears in Court

A suspect has appeared in court as extradition hearings started in the case of Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan national, a female from Kenya who was found dead near a British forces camp in the year 2012.

The accused Robert Purkiss, 38 years old, who is originally from Greater Manchester region, appeared before the magistrates' court in Westminster on the last Friday, and informed the court he intended to contest the extradition request. Reports indicate that he was detained on the evening of Thursday.

An arrest warrant for the defendant was issued by a Nairobi court in the month of September. The prosecution stated before the Kenyan court that the accused had been facing a single count, of murder, and that the Kenyan government would seek his extradition to face charges.

Purkiss was once employed as a army medic with the Lancaster Regiment, the military regiment for the English northwest, including on tours of Afghanistan.

The victim, twenty-one, a hair stylist who had a infant daughter, vanished after a night out, and her corpse was located two months later in the grounds of the lodging where she had previously spotted.

Nobody had earlier been taken into custody or charged in relation to her death. His detention came after a new police inquiry, which came after a article in the year 2021 by the Sunday Times, in which the newspaper reached out to several active and retired troops in the unit.

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