LONDON, May 26 (UPI) -- A suspect in the slaying of a British soldier in Woolwich, England, was in Kenya in 2010 on suspicion of planning to join a terrorist group, officials said.
The British Foreign Office said Michael Adebolajo had been arrested in Kenya as he was believed to have been getting ready to fight with the Somali terrorist group al-Shabaab, the BBC reported Sunday.
Al-Shabaab, an Islamist group, is affiliated with al-Qaida and is believed to have 7,000 to 9,000 members, the BBC said.
Police investigating Lee Rigby's killing arrested Adebolajo, 28 and Michael Adebowale, 22, Wednesday in London.
The Kenyan government previously had denied Adebolajo had ever visited the country. There had been confusion, since he was arrested under a different name, Kenyan government spokesman Muthui Kariuki said.
Adebolajo had been arrested with five others and given over to British officials when it was established he was a British citizen, Kariuki said.
The two suspects were shot and wounded by police after they remained near the body after allegedly slaying the soldier. They are in a hospital in stable condition, the BBC said.
