Agnes Wanjuri, 21, was found murdered near a British training base in Kenya in June 2012/DAILY MAIL
A former British soldier accused of murdering a young Kenyan woman more than a decade ago has denied the allegations from behind bars as he fights extradition to Kenya, Daily Mail exclusively reports.
Robert Purkiss, 38, is accused of stabbing 21-year-old Agnes Wanjuri and dumping her body in a septic tank near a British military training area.
The Daily Mail reports that the incident allegedly happened in 2012 and was “supposedly covered up” by the British military chain of command, sparking diplomatic tensions between Kenya and the UK.
A Kenyan court ordered Purkiss’ arrest and extradition in September so he can face trial in Kenya. Wanjuri was reported to be a sex worker operating near the base at the time.
Her family travelled to London last month where Defence Secretary John Healey assured them of the UK’s “steadfast support” in pursuing justice, according to Daily Mail.
Purkiss, who is married with two children and now runs an IT company, is being held at a London prison after a magistrate denied him bail at an extradition hearing earlier this month. He told the court he "vehemently denies" the accusations.
Speaking publicly for the first time in an interview with Daily Mail, Purkiss denied knowing Wanjuri or being involved in her death. “I did not kill Agnes Wanjuri; I do not believe I ever met her either. Neither would I joke about killing a woman - that conversation has no basis in reality,” he said.
He added that he only learned about the death “weeks later” while on exercise in Canada. “I never booked the hotel room, can’t remember ever being in it. I think we were back in camp by midnight.”
Wanjuri’s remains were recovered three months after she disappeared. Daily Mail reports that she was last seen with British troops on March 31, 2012. Witnesses told investigators they heard a woman screaming that night, while two soldiers were seen accompanying her to hotel room D1, located near the septic tank.
According to Daily Mail, Purkiss is accused of bragging to colleagues that he killed “a brass” because “the sex was bad”, a claim he denies. “There was none,” he said, arguing that there would have been blood on his clothes if he had committed the murder. “There is no basis in fact to any suggestion I murdered Agnes Wanjuri.”
The case largely hinges on testimony from another former soldier, Liam Hendry, who alleged that Purkiss showed him the body. The Daily Mail reports that Hendry has since developed a drug addiction and has multiple shoplifting convictions.
Purkiss told the publication he fears a “show trial” in Kenya. “For the sake of my family, I try to stay positive, but it is bloody hard,” he said.
His wife, Kelly, also defended him in interviews with the Daily Mail, saying, “I know my husband and he would not have killed her or slept with her.”
Wanjuri’s family welcomed his arrest. “We have waited so many years for this moment,” her niece, Esther Njoki told Daily Mail.
The UK Ministry of Defence declined to comment, citing ongoing legal proceedings, according to Daily Mail.
