IG Mutyambai reopens Agnes Wanjiru murder case
Agnes Wanjiru, who was found dead in 2012 after she went missing.
What you need to know:
- She was killed at a resort in Nanyuki, Laikipia County in 2012.
Inspector-General of Police Hillary Mutyambai has ordered DCI detectives to reopen the case looking into the murder of Agnes Wanjiru.
She was killed at a resort in Nanyuki, Laikipia County in 2012.
He has also urged British authorities to cooperate with Kenya as it probes the case.
This comes after the story of her death was thrust in the global limelight following revelations by a UK newspaper of an official cover-up of the crime reportedly committed by a British soldier.
Additionally, Britain has recently accused the Kenyan police of sluggish investigations into her killing in 2012.
Yesterday, the UK’s Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace, who is expected in the country this week, said Kenyan police only made a formal request for DNA samples this week, almost 10 years after the death.
“We are responding to the formal request,” he said.
Ben Wallace, the UK's Secretary of State for Defence.
He added that the Royal Military Police is in daily contact with its Kenyan counterpart and assisting with lines of inquiry in the UK.
The DNA request is with respect to nine British soldiers who had booked into the Lion’s Court Inn in Nanyuki on the night Ms Wanjiru was killed.
The Sunday Times in London last week reported that an investigation initiated by police back then identified the soldiers for questioning and asked the British Royal Military Police to interview them and take DNA samples.
“However, the Ministry of Defence said it never received any such request and DNA samples were never provided, causing the inquiry to stall,” the paper said, adding that the nine did not include the alleged killer.
Yesterday, the Daily Nation sought to find out why the Kenyan police would ask for DNA samples nearly 10 years after the incident but police spokesman, Mr Bruno Shioso, said he was out of town.
He promised a response as soon as he gets back to the capital.
In the wake of the expose, pressure is piling on the two governments to bring the killer soldier to justice.
Kenya is the only one investigating the case as Mr Wallace said the UK has not launch a parallel investigation since the incident took place in Kenya.
