The family of Agnes Wanjiru, the 21-year-old mother whose body was found in a septic tank at a Nanyuki hotel in 2012, has protested after a UK court pushed back the extradition hearing of the former British soldier accused of killing her to May 2027.

The hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, where Robert James Purkiss is contesting a bid to send him to Kenya to stand trial for murder, had been set to open in mid-November. According to the family, it has now been moved to May 24, 2027, meaning the case will roll into its 15th year without a trial. Purkiss, 38, denies the allegation.

Family learnt of the delay by chance

Wanjiru's niece, Esther Njoki, said the family found out about the postponement through the British Embassy on Tuesday and had received no official explanation.

"It is completely unacceptable because it will be 15 years since Agnes was brutally murdered," Njoki said. In a statement, she added: "We have exercised patience and endured uncertainty for years, but our patience is now being taken advantage of."

She said Wanjiru's daughter, Stacy, who was five months old when her mother died, deserved answers, and that the family deserved to be treated with dignity and kept informed about proceedings that affect them so deeply.

The relatives had already raised money and made plans to travel to London for the hearing, which was due in about three weeks. A fundraiser had sought about Sh1 million to cover passports, visas, flights and accommodation for Stacy and Njoki. The family says it will now keep fundraising for a trip next year.

Communication shared with the family indicates that the court is expected to give reasons for the delay next week. Njoki said she could only guess at the cause, such as one side asking for more time to gather evidence or the availability of a judge, but neither has been confirmed.

A 14-year wait for justice

Wanjiru disappeared in March 2012 after an evening out at a hotel in Nanyuki, about 200km north of Nairobi, where British soldiers training in Kenya were staying. Her body was found nearly three months later in the hotel's septic tank, with stab wounds to the chest and abdomen.

A Kenyan inquest ruled in 2019 that she had been unlawfully killed by one or two British soldiers, but the case stalled for years before renewed pressure on both governments revived it.

  • September 2025: a Kenyan High Court issued an arrest warrant for a British national after prosecutors said they had enough evidence to bring a murder charge.
  • November 2025: the UK's National Crime Agency arrested Purkiss in Britain.
  • February 2026: he appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court by video link and was further remanded in custody.

Pressure on London

Former UK Defence Secretary John Healey met the family during a visit to Kenya last year and pledged his government's support in the search for justice. The UK government has said it remains committed to helping the family but does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.

The case remains a sore point in relations over the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK), whose presence in Laikipia has long drawn complaints from local communities. Purkiss is presumed innocent unless proven guilty by a court.

Photos: Nation Media Group (Agnes Wanjiru); Mike Peel via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.