A former British soldier, Robert Purkiss, 38, is currently embroiled in a high-profile international dispute, facing extradition to Kenya over the alleged murder of Agnes Wanjuri, a 21-year-old Kenyan mother. Purkiss vehemently denies the accusations, breaking his silence from a London prison where he is held on remand after being refused bail. The case has ignited a furious diplomatic row between Kenya and the UK, with Ms. Wanjuri's family, supported by UK Defence Secretary John Healey, pushing for justice.

Agnes Wanjuri's partially naked body was discovered in a septic tank at the Lions Court hotel in Nanyuki, Kenya, in June 2012, three months after her disappearance in March 2012. An inquest in 2018 concluded that she had been unlawfully killed by British soldiers. Ms. Wanjuri, a mother of one and a hairdresser, was last seen socializing with British troops on March 31, 2012, at the hotel, which was popular with off-duty soldiers. A hotel manager reported seeing her leave the bar with two soldiers and enter room D1, near the septic tank, while a night guard and a guest claimed to have heard a woman screaming.

The allegations against Purkiss are severe. He is accused of stabbing Ms. Wanjuri in the abdomen and then dumping her body. Colleagues allegedly heard him confess to the murder, joking on the journey back to base that he killed “a brass” because “the sex was bad.” Another colleague, Liam Hendry, allegedly saw Purkiss crying outside the hotel, claiming, “I’ve killed her,” and was later reportedly shown Ms. Wanjuri’s bloodied body by Purkiss. Furthermore, Purkiss is alleged to have responded with a “smiling face emoji” to a 2018 social media post referencing the hotel and septic tank.

In an exclusive interview, Purkiss staunchly refuted these claims, stating, “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 asserts he only learned of the incident weeks later while on military exercise in Canada and only much later about a body being found. He denies booking or remembering the hotel room and believes he was back in camp by midnight. As a medic who has treated people on the battlefield, Purkiss points out that if he had stabbed her, there would have been a significant amount of blood on his clothes and hands, which he claims there was none. He fears a