Ex-Boyfriend Accused of Killing Olympic Marathoner Dies From His Injuries

The man who allegedly killed Ugandan Olympic marathoner Rebecca Cheptegei by setting her on fire has died, just days after the 33-year-old succumbed to her own injuries .

The BBC reports that an official with the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in western Kenya, where both Cheptegei and her former boyfriend Dickson Ndiema had been treated, confirmed that Ndiema died while being treated in the the intensive care unit on Monday night. Ndiema had suffered burns to 40 percent of his body after accidentally catching himself on fire in the attack.

"He developed respiratory failure as a result of the severe airway burns and sepsis that led to his eventual death on Monday evening at 18:30 hours despite life-saving measures," a press release stated.

Cheptegei had been returning home from church with her two children earlier this month to find Ndiema waiting for her, according to local media reports. The pair had been arguing over land she had purchased in Trans Nzoia county to be closer to the athletic training centers of Kenya when Ndiema allegedly doused her with a five-litre jerry can full of gasoline and set her on fire.

Cheptegei died in the hospital last week after sustaining burns to 80 percent of her body.

During the attack, Ndiema accidentally splashed some of the fuel on his own body and became caught in the fire. Authorities had been classifying Cheptegei's death as murder with Ndiema as the main suspect. However, now that he has died, the criminal case has been closed and instead, a formal inquest into the deaths will be opened.

Just weeks before she was killed, Cheptegei had come in 44th place in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Previously in 2022, she had taken the gold at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand.