More than thirteen years after the tragic death of Agnes Wanjiru, a young mother whose body was discovered in a septic tank behind a hotel in Nanyuki, Kenya, a new chapter has opened in the search for justice. On September 16, 2025, a Kenyan High Court issued an arrest warrant for Robert James Purkiss, a British national and former medic with the Duke of Lancaster regiment, accused of murdering Wanjiru on the night of March 31, 2012. This legal move could mark the first time a serving or former British soldier is extradited to stand trial abroad for the killing of a civilian—a development that has been met with a mixture of relief, hope, and lingering frustration by Wanjiru’s family, friends, and advocates.
Agnes Wanjiru’s story is one of hardship, resilience, and ultimately, heartbreak. On the night she disappeared, Wanjiru, then 21 and the mother of a five-month-old daughter, had arranged for a friend’s mother to babysit so she could spend an evening out with friends. According to the BBC, the group first visited Sherlock’s bar, a popular spot in Nanyuki’s business district, where British soldiers—locally known as “Johnnies”—were a familiar presence. “There were a lot of muzungu (white) men there,” Friend A recalled, noting some were in plain clothes and others in army uniforms.
For many local women, encounters with these foreign soldiers carried a mix of opportunity and risk. Wanjiru’s friends described her as resourceful but struggling financially, sometimes earning less than £1 a day and relying on her sister’s support. She was known to accept drinks from men, occasionally asking bartenders to hand her the cash instead of the beverage—an act her friends defended as a means of survival but not evidence of sex work. “When women are financially desperate, they will do almost anything to survive,” Friend A told the BBC. “I don’t believe Agnes was a sex worker though. I never saw her do that. She was very poor.”
As the night wore on, the friends moved to Lions Court Hotel, another local hangout. Wanjiru was last seen there, mingling with British soldiers. Friend B remembered, “The muzungus were buying us drinks, and Agnes was returning them to the bar in exchange for money.” At some point, Wanjiru left the bar with one of the white men. Some reports suggest she may have left with two. Her friends assumed she had made a consensual arrangement and thought little of it—until the next morning, when Wanjiru failed to return home.
Wanjiru’s disappearance immediately alarmed her friends and family. Friend B, upon learning that the young mother had not come home, rushed to check on Wanjiru’s baby, who was still with the babysitter. By evening, with no sign of Wanjiru, her friends reported her missing at the local police station. Their search for answers led them back to Lions Court, where a watchman mentioned a “big fight” in one of the rooms that weekend. But it would be nearly three months before the grim truth emerged: on June 5, 2012, Wanjiru’s body was found in a septic tank behind the hotel. She had been stabbed in the chest and abdomen, and a post-mortem revealed signs of beating. The state of her remains made it impossible to determine whether she had been sexually assaulted.
The case languished for years, drawing little attention outside Nanyuki. It wasn’t until an inquest in 2018 that a Kenyan judge concluded Wanjiru had been murdered by one or two British soldiers. According to The Sunday Times, knowledge of the killing was widespread among the troops stationed in Nanyuki. The soldier now accused, Robert James Purkiss, was reportedly struck off by the army but continued to live freely in the UK.
Pressure on British and Kenyan authorities mounted after Wanjiru’s family expressed frustration over the lack of convictions. In 2021, Kenyan police reopened the case, and new reporting by Open Democracy in 2024 revealed that British soldiers at the Nanyuki base continued to engage in transactional sex, despite a 2022 ban following the allegations surrounding Wanjiru’s death. An internal investigation in August 2025 confirmed ongoing misconduct, with some soldiers still involved with vulnerable, coerced, or trafficked women.
Momentum for justice surged in April 2025 when UK Defence Secretary John Healey traveled to Kenya to meet Wanjiru’s family. He offered condolences and promised, “The British government will continue to do everything we can to help the family secure the justice they deserve.”
The September 16 arrest warrant for Purkiss has been hailed as a breakthrough. “It is highly welcome and a positive step towards the arch of justice,” said Kelvin Kubai, a lawyer at the African Centre for Corrective and Preventive Action, in remarks reported by the BBC. “However the battle isn’t yet won, given the legal hurdles of extradition proceedings, and we hope the relevant government institutions of both states shall continue cooperating to meet the ends of justice.”
Wanjiru’s family echoed this cautious optimism. In a statement after the warrant was issued, they called the development “incredibly welcome,” noting, “We have lived with Agnes’ death for over a decade.” Her niece, Esther Njoki, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to support the family, help them travel to the UK, and raise awareness about the case. “We need to push for financial security for Agnes’s daughter,” Esther said, highlighting how the teenager’s future remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, friends and advocates insist that justice has been delayed for far too long. “The British Army cannot keep ignoring the murder of our friend,” said Friend A. “We want justice for Agnes and her daughter.” According to a UK government spokesperson, “Our thoughts remain with the family of Agnes Wanjiru and we remain absolutely committed to helping them secure justice. This is subject to ongoing legal proceedings and we will not comment further at this stage.”
The extradition, if it proceeds, would set a historic precedent. Never before has a serving or former British soldier been sent abroad to face trial for the killing of a civilian. Purkiss’s case is scheduled for a mention hearing in Kenya on October 21, 2025, a date that Wanjiru’s family and supporters are watching with hope—and no small measure of anxiety.
For the people of Nanyuki and for Wanjiru’s loved ones, the long wait for accountability continues. But with the wheels of justice now, at last, in motion, there’s a sense that the truth may finally come to light—and that Agnes Wanjiru’s memory will not be forgotten.
