A Ugandan Olympian is in intensive care in a Kenyan hospital after being doused with petrol and set on fire allegedly by her partner, officials said yesterday, the latest horrific incident of gender-based violence in the East African country.
Long-distance runner Rebecca Cheptegei, 33, was assaulted after her Kenyan partner Dickson Ndiema Marangach reportedly snuck into her home in Endebess in the western county of TransNzoia at around 2:00 pm on Sunday while she and her children were at church, police said.
“Dickson, who had procured petrol, began pouring (it) on Rebecca before he set her ablaze,” a police report said late Monday, adding that the flames also injured him.
It said that neighbours had rescued the pair and taken them to nearby Kitale County Referral Hospital, where they were admitted with “multiple burns”.
They were transferred to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), where Cheptegei was admitted to the intensive care unit on Monday.