Ex British Soldier Charged of Killing Kenya Female Appears in Court

A suspect has been presented in court as extradition proceedings started in the investigation of the victim Agnes Wanjiru, a female from Kenya who was killed near a British forces camp in 2012.

Purkiss, 38 years old, who is a native of Greater Manchester region, showed up in the magistrates' court in Westminster on Friday, and informed the court he intended to contest the extradition request. Reports indicate that he was taken into custody on Thursday night.

An arrest warrant for the defendant was released by a court in Nairobi in the month of September. Legal prosecutors informed the Kenyan judiciary that the accused had been charged with a sole charge, of murder, and that the Kenyan authorities would request his deportation to stand trial.

The defendant served formerly as a medical attendant with the Lancaster Regiment, the military regiment for the northwestern England, including on deployments in Afghanistan.

Wanjiru, 21 years old, a beautician who had a young daughter, disappeared after a night on the town, and her body was located two months later in the grounds of the lodging where she had most recently observed.

Not a single person had earlier been detained or charged in relation to her passing. The arrest of Purkiss came after a recent detective probe, which followed a exposé in 2021 by a Sunday newspaper, in which the publication approached several active and retired troops in the military group.

The probe has been led by investigators from Kenya, which, under a bilateral defence agreement, maintains prosecutorial power in the case.