A former British soldier wanted in Kenya over the death of a young mother more than 12 years ago has been denied bail by a London court.
Robert James Purkiss, 38, from Tidworth in Wiltshire, appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court following his 6 November arrest. Kenyan authorities are seeking his extradition in connection with the 2012 killing of 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru near a British Army training base in Nanyuki.
According to prosecutors, Purkiss allegedly confessed to at least one fellow soldier, claiming he killed Wanjiru during a night out at a hotel near the camp. Her body was discovered three months later in a septic tank at the same hotel. At the time of her death, Wanjiru had a five-month-old infant.
Purkiss’s legal team says he firmly denies the allegations and intends to contest the extradition request. His arrest followed a warrant issued in September and was carried out by specialist officers from the UK’s National Crime Agency.
Wanjiru was last seen at a bar frequented by British soldiers. Persistent pressure from her family and Kenyan human rights advocates eventually led to the case being reopened, culminating in a 2018 inquest.
The inquest, completed in 2019, concluded that Wanjiru had been unlawfully killed, citing stab wounds to her chest and abdomen and identifying one or two British soldiers as likely responsible.
