Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei's former partner died on Monday, September 9, 2024, about a week after he set Cheptegei on fire, killing her. She was 33 years old. Cheptegei was a distance runner who competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Her former boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema Marangach, poured gasoline on her and set her on fire. She suffered burns to more than 80% of her body as a result of the attack, per BBC.
Ndiema's death was also a result of his attack. According to the outlet, Ndiema was in the intensive care unit when he died. At the time that he was admitted, he had burns covering more than 40% of his body.
Ndiema was also injured in the attack that killed Cheptegei because some of the gasoline he doused her in got on him as well, per BBC.
According to a press release from Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, per BBC, Ndiema "developed respiratory failure as a result of the severe airway burns and sepsis that led to his eventual death."
Cheptegei was attacked in her own home in Trans-Nzoia County in western Kenya on September 1. Ndiema reportedly attacked Cheptegei when she was on her way home from church with her children, per NBC News.
According to the Associated Press, Cheptegei and Ndiema were heard arguing about the land that the house was built on prior to the violent attack.
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BBC reported that prior to Ndiema's death, Cheptegei's death was being investigated as a homicide. The criminal investigation has reportedly been closed since the main suspect has died.
Cheptegei's death has prompted conversations about violence against women in Kenya. According to BBC, three female athletes have been killed in Kenya in the past three years. Female athletes might be targeted because their lifestyles and the amount of money they make deviate from traditional gender norms, explained a cofounder of Tirop’s Angels, an organization supporting survivors of domestic violence, per BBC.
While Ndiema's attack ended up killing him as well, some have argued that this is not justice.
Viola Cheptoo, cofounder of Tirop’s Angels, said Ndiema's death "is not positive news whatsoever." "Justice really would have been for him to sit in jail and think about what he had done," Viola said, per The Guardian.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic abuse, you can find help and support at DVIS.org, the National Domestic Abuse Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or by contacting your local women's shelter domesticshelters.org.
