Ugandan Athlete Rebecca Cheptegei Dies After Boyfriend Set Her Ablaze (Photo)

 

Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei has been confirmed dead.

 

She died days after her boyfriend Dickson Ndiema allegedly set her on fire.

 

Cheptegei, who lived in Kenya, represented Uganda at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

 

Authorities revealed that the horrific incident occurred in her home, Western Trans Nzoia County, Nairobi, on Sunday.

 

The duo was said to have engaged in a domestic dispute, during which Ndiema poured petrol on Cheptegei and ignited it, leaving her with severe burns covering 75% of her body.

 

Ndiema, also sustained burn injuries, and was receiving specialized treatment at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret.

 

The attack allegedly stemmed from a disagreement over land ownership, which Cheptegei’s parents claim she had purchased to be closer to the region’s renowned athletic training centers.

 

The death comes three years after Kenya’s Agnes Tirop was found stabbed to death at her home in Iten in 2021.

 

The husband of the 25-year-old was also named the suspect in the murder.

 

In 2022, Damaris Mutua, another Kenyan-born athlete, was found dead in a house in Iten, and her then-boyfriend was also identified as a suspect.