THE British military’s handling of crimes by its own personnel is under scrutiny after Labour’s John Healey suggested that the army may have covered up of the murder of a Kenyan woman by a soldier.

Shadow defence secretary Mr Healey said that this was “another case that raises serious questions about the way crimes are reported, investigated and prosecuted in the military.”

A British soldier has reportedly confessed to murdering 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru 12 years ago, after her body was found near a British army training camp near the Kenyan town of Nanyuki.

Senior officers who were told of the murder are said to have taken no action.

An investigation into Ms Wanjiru’s death stalled when a request submitted by Kenyan police to the British Royal Military Police in  June 2012 for the questioning of nine soldiers apparently went missing.

The case has resurfaced through investigations by the Kenyan police after an inquest found that Ms Wanjiru, a sex worker, was unlawfully killed.

A post-mortem examination found that she died as a result of stab wounds to her chest and abdomen.

There was also evidence she had been beaten, although, due to the condition of her body, it was unclear whether she had been sexually assaulted.

Mr Healey said that despite the “dreadful details” of the case, “there’s still no action from defence ministers on reports of grave failings by the British military.

“There’s been no MoD [Ministry of Defence]-led investigation of the soldiers involved and no inquiry into why the MoD failed to respond when Kenyan detectives asked for help.

“Nine years on, justice must now be done for Agnes and her family.

“The Defence Secretary [Ben Wallace] must take this more seriously. He should pledge the fullest co-operation to Kenyan detectives and launch an inquiry into any possible cover-up from commanding officers, military police or the MoD.

“When our forces serve overseas, they stand up for British values and these allegations, if proven, would profoundly betray those values.

“This is another case that raises serious questions about the way crimes are reported, investigated and prosecuted in the military.”

A defence source said: “The Defence Secretary has been impatient with the pace of this and has directed full co-operation.

“He has worked with the military police and Kenyans to ensure their investigation is not impeded.”