British soldier in Nanyuki arrested over rape- UK's Defence Ministry

A British soldier based at the army’s barracks in Kenya has been accused of raping a woman, close to where a local mother was murdered, also allegedly by a soldier on secondment to the country.

According to The Sunday Times, the alleged rape occurred last month after a group of soldiers visited a bar in Nanyuki near British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK).

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 remote countryside.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed that one arrest had been made in relation to an ongoing criminal investigation around the Nanyuki army base.

The alleged victim is being supported by specialist officers.

The Defence Serious Crime Unit (DSCU), the UK’s global service police force, has questioned the serving soldier and other witnesses in relation to the alleged attack, which took place last month.

An MoD spokeswoman said: "We can confirm the arrest of a service person in Kenya. As the matter is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the Defence Serious Crime Command, we will not comment further."

The spokeswoman added that “all soldiers who visit or train at BATUK have clear direction about how to behave, on and off duty”, adding: “We will have zero tolerance for unacceptable behaviour.”

Last year, the army began an inquiry into the behaviour of British troops posted to its military base in Nanyuki, after multiple allegations of serious abuses committed by soldiers, including rape of local women and the murder of the local mother, Agnes Wanjiru, 21.

The results of the inquiry have not yet been published.

A long-running 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.