As the Olympic community grieves the tragic loss of a world-class marathon runner, the man allegedly responsible for her death has succumbed to injuries he sustained in the same brutal attack.
Dickson Ndiema Marangach was admitted to hospital on Sept. 1 with severe burns after a horrifying act of domestic violence against his ex-girlfriend Rebecca Cheptegei, who represented Uganda at the Paris Olympics. Authorities said Ndiema doused Cheptegei with gasoline and set her on fire at her home in Trans Nzoia County, Kenya.
Having sustained burns to more than 75 percent of her body, Cheptegei suffered massive organ failure and died at the same facility four days later. At just 33 years old, she had represented neighboring Uganda, her family’s homeland, in several global running championships.
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Now, the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya, has announced that Dickson has also died as a result of his injuries.
“He died from his injuries, the burns he sustained,” Daniel Lang’at, a spokesperson for the hospital, told Reuters. Officials added Tuesday that police believe the attack had taken place because of “a dispute over ownership of the land one of them had bought.”
Eyewitnesses described hearing the former couple arguing at Chepetegei’s home before the assault took place, with neighbors dashing over to discover the runner engulfed in a ball of flames that despite their best efforts, they were unable to put out.
“When I came out, I saw Rebecca running towards my house on fire, shouting, ‘Help me!’” Agnes Barbara, Cheptegei’s next-door neighbor, told the BBC. “As I went to look for water and started calling out for help, her assailant appeared again and doused more petrol on her.”
Prior to Dickson’s death, Cheptegei’s parents had expressed hope that police would have been able to bring their daughter’s killer to justice. The runner’s children are understood to have been present at the property when the attack took place.
Tributes have flooded in ahead of the athlete’s funeral on Sept. 14. Sebastian Coe, World Athletics president, has described Cheptegei as “an incredibly versatile runner who still had lots left to give on the roads, mountains and cross-country trails,” and the city of Paris announced it intends to name a sports venue after her to honor her memory.
“Paris will not forget her and we will dedicate a sports venue to her, so that her memory and her story will remain among us and help us carry even stronger the message of equality, which is a message carried by the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Mayor Anne Hidalgo said in a statement Friday.
