New scandal in Kenya: British soldier arrested on suspicion of rape

A British soldier based at the army barracks in Kenya has been arrested following accusations of rape.

Police have questioned the serving soldier over the incident, which is said to have taken place last month after a group of soldiers visited a bar in Nanyuki near British Army Training Unit Kenya (Batuk). 

The soldier is said to have been based at the barracks, which were previously linked to the 2012 murder of local woman Agnes Wanjiru.

The murder of Ms Wanjiru was also allegedly committed by a soldier on secondment in Kenya.

The British Army currently has an agreement with the African nation to allow up to six infantry battalions per year — around 6,000 soldiers — to conduct exercises in the remote Kenyan countryside.

Following the allegations, the Ministry of Defence confirmed that one arrest had been made in relation to an ongoing criminal investigation centring around the Nanyuki army base.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “We can confirm the arrest of a service person in Kenya."

"Unacceptable and criminal behaviour has absolutely no place in our Armed Forces and any reporting of a serious crime by serving personnel is investigated independently from their chain of command."

“As the matter is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the Defence Serious Crime Unit, we will not comment further.”

Military police have questioned the owner of the bar that the soldiers visited on the night of the alleged rape, as well as a number of security guards who were on duty that evening.

The owner of the bar said: “They [the soldiers] like this place and when I meet some of them in the supermarkets, they tell me they have been banned from coming here. Sometimes they get too drunk and I drop them at the gate for free.”

The army began an inquiry into the behaviour of British soldiers posted to the military base in Nanyuki last year after multiple allegations of serious crimes committed by British army troops in the area.

Allegations included rape of local women and the murder of Agnes Wanjiru, who was 21 years old at the time.

An investigation by The Sunday Times revealed how Wanjiru was killed in March 2012 allegedly by a British soldier serving with the Duke of Lancaster regiment on secondment to the Kenyan base.

The investigation revealed how the British military failed to act on the reports of multiple soldiers who had come forward to name the alleged killer.

Soldiers described how the murder, and the identity of the alleged killer, was widely known in the Duke of Lancaster Regiment from almost the moment the murder happened.

Instead of investigating the allegation, officers told soldiers to “keep quiet” or they would be forced to stay in Kenya, it has been claimed.

When Wanjiru’s body was discovered, military correspondence exchanged with the Kenyan police shows that the British army did not mention that the murder had been reported by soldiers shortly after it had occurred on the night of March 31, 2012.

Agnes Wanjiru’s niece said the new criminal inquiry raises more serious questions about the culture and conduct of the British Army whilst on deployment to Kenya.

Esther Njoki, Wanjiru’s niece and the family’s spokeswoman, said the latest alleged crime raises “troubling” questions about the behaviour of British soldiers in Kenya.

The Wanjiru family and the advocate representing them Mbiyu Kamau follow virtually the postponement of the hearing of the case for the alleged murder of Agnes Wanjiru by a British soldier at the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi on November 29, 2023. Picture: Getty

“I hope justice is served in this case,” she said.

John Healey, the UK defence secretary, has committed to bringing Wanjiru’s killer to justice, and met with her family in April.

He said: “It was deeply humbling to meet the family of Agnes Wanjiru. In the 13 years since her death, they have shown such strength in their long fight for justice. I reiterated my determination to see a resolution to the still unresolved case.”

Wanjiru’s alleged killer, who has not been named, remains a free man and lives with his family in the south of England.

The Kenyan prosecutor said the police investigation into the murder was now complete and they are assessing the evidence.

The British Army has an agreement with Kenya to allow up to six infantry battalions per year — around 6,000 personnel — to conduct eight-week exercises in the African nation’s countryside.