A Kenyan woman whose skirt was lifted in a mall in Nanyuki by a drunk British soldier will be compensated by the UK military.
One of the military's spokespersons said the woman would be compensated from the proceeds of fines generated from the soldier as part of the sanctions against him.
The news about the woman's humiliating experience came to the surface last week after a UK paper reported it. The identity of the woman remains guarded.
The Sunday Times had revealed that the soldier, a colour sergeant or equivalent rank of a warrant officer, was intoxicated at the time of the incident and the woman was known to him.
The victim is receiving compensation, fortunately, the spokesman said.
The soldier, Colour Sergeant Barlow, pleaded guilty to the offence of sexual assault, was fined £500 (Sh75,913) and dismissed from the military.
The British Army has a training base in Nanyuki under the official name of British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK). It is a permanent training support unit.
The spokesperson revealed that the British "Military Police detachment commander at BATUK has been liaising with the victim, who is receiving compensation as part of the sentence on Barlow.
“After consultation with the Nanyuki Police, it was agreed that Barlow’s offence would be investigated by the Royal Military Police and prosecuted through the Service Justice System," the army said, adding that "the investigation was successful and the individual had been dismissed from the service.
The military had described the conduct of the soldier as disgraceful.
“This was appalling behaviour from the senior non-commissioned officer,” the spokesperson said.
The sexual assault case follows an active case in which yet another British soldier allegedly killed a Kenyan sex worker, Agnes Wanjiru, in the area in 2012.
He reportedly posted about the crime on social media, making fun of it with seven or eight colleagues.
UK's Armed Forces minister James Heappey told reporters on Wednesday in Nanyuki that London would leave no stones unturned in the investigations and committed to having the suspected soldier extradited to Nairobi to stand trial.
He addressed a press conference after meeting local communities, opinion leaders and sex workers' representatives. He also apologised for the conduct of the soldier.
He said that though he understood that residents were angry and wanted justice, he didn't believe closing down the training camp was an appropriate response.
"If there are further allegations, absolutely no stone will be left unturned in making sure we provide all the information necessary for the Kenyan authorities to investigate those claims," the minister said.
