Man accused of killing Ugandan Olympian dies in hospital


A man accused of setting a Ugandan Olympian on fire, resulting in her death, has also died from injuries sustained in the attack.

Marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei, 33, breathed her last on Thursday after she was left severely injured following the attack in Kenya.

Dickson Ndiema, her alleged attacker and former partner, died on Monday night at the intensive care unit where he had been admitted after also sustaining injuries in the attack.

He was admitted to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in the Kenyan city of Eldoret, the same facility where Ms Cheptegei was treated.

A spokesperson for the hospital confirmed to the Associated Press on Tuesday that Ndiema had died.

He was previously accused of buying a can of petrol, pouring it on her, and setting her on fire.

Ms Cheptegei suffered 80% burns to her body in the attack, while Ndiema also reportedly suffered 30% burns.

A report filed by the local police chief said the couple were heard fighting over a piece of land, where Ms Cheptegei lived, before the fire started.

Ms Cheptegei's parents told the Kenyan news outlet, The Star, that their daughter bought land in Trans Nzoia to be near the country's athletic training centres.

Her father told reporters last week that Ndiema, his daughter's ex-boyfriend, had been stalking and threatening her, and the family had informed the police.

Police were treating Ms Cheptegei's death as murder, with Ndiema named as the main suspect.

Ms Cheptegei, who recently competed in the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where she finished 44th, was born on the Kenyan side of the Kenya-Uganda border but chose to cross over and represent Uganda.

She is due to be buried on Saturday in her ancestral home town in Uganda, in a military ceremony, as she was a member of the Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces (UPDF), according to The Star.

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