Two British soldiers serving in Afghanistan are under investigation over the murder of a Kenyan prostitute.
The body of Agnes Wanjiru-Wanjiku, 21, was found stuffed inside a septic tank at a hotel where she plied her trade as a sex worker.
A night porter at the hotel in Nanyuki, Kenya, has said he witnessed a violent altercation between a British soldier and Wanjiru-Wanjiku in one of the rooms.
The British Army keeps a base in the Rift Valley town for soldiers carrying out training prior to their deployment in Afghanistan.
The area offers unique jungle and desert training opportunities for the military and is one of the only places where live rounds are used in training exercises.
It is understood Wanjiru-Wanjiku had been working as a prostitute in the town and was last seen alive on the night of March 31.
Witnesses have come forward claiming they saw the prostitute, who had a six-month-old baby, entering the Lion’s Court Hotel with two British soldiers in March.
The night porter allegedly saw the 21-year-old in a violent altercation with at least one British soldier in one of the rooms later that night. Her badly decomposed body was recovered more than two months later as a hotel worker was unblocking the tank.
Police in Kenya began a murder investigation but it is understood troops left Nanyuki shortly afterwards to be deployed in Afghanistan.
Human rights groups have hit out at an apparent lack of impetus in the investigation, claiming police were not willing to apprehend the soldiers. Wanjiru-Wanjiku’s family also fear those responsible may never be brought to justice.
During her burial recently, Benedict Kimotho, an uncle, said family members and friends held the hotel and the British Army responsible.
‘We still believe that the hotel has records indicating who these soldiers were and can arrest them,’ said Mr Kimotho.
An MoD spokesman said it was assisting the Kenyan authorities where appropriate.
In April this year around 200 soldiers were involved in a massive bar brawl at a pub in Nanyuki which resulted in a number of troops requiring hospital treatment. - Daily Mail