Cheptegei's killer dies from burns

The former partner of Ugandan athlete and Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei, who is accused of killing her by dousing her in petrol and setting her on fire, has died from burns suffered during the attack.

The Kenyan hospital where he was being treated confirmed the news on Sept 10.

Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the marathon at the recent Paris Olympics, suffered burns to more than 75 per cent of her body in the Sept 1 attack and died four days later.

Her former boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema Marangach, died at 7.50pm on Sept 9, said Daniel Lang'at, a spokesperson at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret in western Kenya, where Cheptegei was also treated and died.

"He died from his injuries, the burns he sustained," Lang'at said.