Man accused of killing Olympic runner in fire attack dies of his own burns

Johannesburg — The man accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend, a Ugandan Olympic marathon runner, Rebecca Cheptegeiin flames in a Attack with fatal outcome died in a Kenyan hospital from burns sustained in the incident. Dickson Ndiema died at Moi Teaching Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya. Cheptegei also died there after suffering burns several days earlier in a dispute with her ex-boyfriend, allegedly over land.

Neighbours reported hearing voices and then seeing Ndiema pour petrol on Cheptegei on August 31 as she returned from church with her two daughters. He too was seriously injured in the attack and succumbed to his burns in the hospital's intensive care unit, a hospital official said on Tuesday.

“He suffered respiratory failure due to severe respiratory burns and sepsis, which ultimately led to his death,” Philip Kirwa, the hospital's managing director, said in a statement.

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Cheptegei suffered burns to more than 80 percent of her body and died of multiple organ failure on September 5. Police confirmed that the incident was still under investigation.

Cheptegei finished 44th in the marathon at the recent Olympic Games in Paris and was well known in the running world.

Local media in Kenya and Uganda reported that little was known about Ndiema, but that the two had not been together for some time before the attack.

Cheptegi, a member of the Uganda People's Defense Force, is scheduled to be buried with military honors in Bukwo, Uganda, on September 14, in the presence of dignitaries from Kenya and Uganda.

Her death follows the high-profile murders of several Kenyan athletes allegedly committed by their partners, including Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in her home in 2021. Tirop's estranged husband is still on trial for her murder.

According to a 2023 report by the Kenyan Bureau of National Statistics, 34% of women had experienced physical violence by the age of 15, with married or married women almost twice as likely to report such violence.

Joseph Cheptegei, the father of the deceased Olympian, told reporters outside the hospital that his family had lost “their breadwinner” and a “very supportive” daughter, and expressed concern about how the family would pay for the education of their two daughters.

The Ugandan Olympic Committee had previously called on law enforcement authorities in social media posts to “intervene swiftly and decisively to bring the perpetrator of this cowardly and deplorable act to justice.”

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