Two arrested over Ugandan Olympic runner’s killing in Kenya, police say

Two men have been arrested over the killing of Ugandan Olympic runner Benjamim Kiplagat, who was found dead in a car in Kenya on New Year’s Eve, police have said.

A knife suspected of being used in the killing of the 34-year-old was found on one of the suspects, Moiben sub county police commander Stephen Okal said.

The motive for the killing appears to have been robbery, he said, because money and a mobile phone were taken.

Kiplagat’s throat was cut, police said.

He was found dead in his brother’s car early on Sunday on the outskirts of Eldoret, a high-altitude town in western Kenya renowned as a training base for elite athletes.

Kiplagat competed in three Olympic games and six world championships in the 3,000-metre steeplechase.

He won a bronze medal at the 2012 African championships.

Kiplagat is the fourth athlete to be killed in the area in recent years.

Two-time cross-country world champion Agnes Tirop was fatally stabbed in her home in the nearby town of Iten in 2021. Her husband is on trial charged with murder.

Kenyan-born Bahrain runner Damaris Muthee’s decomposing body was found at a male Ethiopian athlete’s house in 2022. The athlete is the main suspect in her death but has not been caught.

And Rwandan runner Rubayita Siragi was killed in August in what police believe was a fight with another athlete over a woman.