Former British Serviceman Accused of Murdering Kenyan Woman Shows Up in Courtroom

A man has appeared in court as extradition proceedings began in the investigation of Agnes Wanjiru, a female from Kenya who was murdered near a UK military installation in 2012.

Purkiss, 38, who is hailing from Greater Manchester region, was presented at the Westminster court on the last Friday, and informed the court he planned to fight the extradition request. It is understood that he was detained on the evening of Thursday.

A warrant for arrest for the suspect was authorized by a court in Nairobi in September. The state attorneys stated before the Kenyan court that the accused had been accused of a sole charge, of killing, and that the government of Kenya would seek his extradition to answer to accusations.

Purkiss was once employed as a medic with the Lancaster Regiment, the infantry regiment for the north-west of England, including on missions to Afghanistan.

Agnes Wanjiru, 21, a beautician who had a baby daughter, vanished after a night on the town, and her remains was discovered after two months in the grounds of the lodging where she had previously spotted.

No one had earlier been arrested or indicted in relation to her demise. Purkiss’s arrest came after a new police inquiry, which came after a article in 2021 by a Sunday newspaper, in which the newspaper reached out to several current and former soldiers in the regiment.

This inquiry has been spearheaded by Kenyan detectives, which, under a bilateral security treaty, maintains prosecutorial power in the legal case.