Ex British Serviceman Charged of Killing Kenya Female Shows Up in Court

A man has shown up before a judge as deportation processes started in the investigation of Agnes Wanjiru, a female from Kenya who was killed near a British forces camp in 2012.

Purkiss, 38, who is a native of Greater Manchester region, showed up in Westminster magistrates court on Friday, and told the court he would challenge the extradition request. It is understood that he was detained on Thursday evening.

A detention order for the suspect was authorized by a Kenyan court in Nairobi in the month of September. Legal prosecutors told the Kenyan court that the individual had been charged with a single count, of homicide, and that the Kenyan authorities would request his deportation to answer to accusations.

Purkiss served formerly as a army medic with the regiment of the Duke of Lancaster, the military regiment for the north-west of England, including on missions to Afghanistan.

The victim, 21, a beautician who had a baby daughter, disappeared after a night on the town, and her body was found two months later in the area of the hotel where she had previously spotted.

Not a single person had earlier been detained or charged in relation to her passing. His detention was the result of a recent detective probe, which followed a exposé in 2021 by a Sunday newspaper, in which the publication approached several current and former soldiers in the unit.

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