British man arrested in UK over 2012 murder of Kenyan woman

A British man has been arrested in the United Kingdom over the 2012 murder of Agnes Wanjiru, a Kenyan woman whose killing sparked public outrage 13 years ago.

In a statement released on Saturday November 2025, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) said the suspect had been “remanded in police custody in the United Kingdom”.

He would appear before a London court on November 14, 2025, for a bail hearing. A follow-up case session on Kenya’s extradition request is set for December 9, 2025.

“This is a major step following close and coordinated work between Kenyan and British authorities,” said the DPP.

The arrest comes six weeks after Kenya started formal extradition proceedings. A Nairobi court issued a warrant of arrest on 16 September, and by 9 October, all documents had been sent to the Office of the Attorney General for submission to UK authorities.

Agnes Wanjiru, the then 21-year-old mother and hairdresser, went missing on March 31, 2012, after being seen with British soldiers at the Lion’s Court Lodge in Nanyuki.

Her body was found in a septic tank at the same lodge on June 5, 2012.

The case drew widespread anger in Kenya, especially after witnesses linked her death to British troops training in Nanyuki under the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK).

For more than a decade, Wanjiru’s family and human rights groups have demanded justice.

The DPP said the office remains “fully committed to pursuing justice for Agnes Wanjiru and her family, working with international partners to ensure that those responsible are held accountable.”

The arrest gives fresh hope that justice, though long delayed, may finally be within reach.