Former 1500m world champion Asbel Kiprop drugged, robbed in Eldoret

Former 1500m world champion Asbel Kiprop during the interview in Eldoret. [Peter Ochieng, Standard]

Police in Kapseret, Uasin Gishu County, are searching for a woman linked to drugging and robbing three-time 1500m world champion Asbel Kiprop of an unknown amount of money at a club over the weekend.

The former athlete who is a senior police officer, found himself in an awkward situation after the woman conned him.

Area Police Commander Sephania Kamoren, said Kiprop, who holds the rank of Chief Inspector, went to the club on Friday afternoon to watch football matches before the suspect joined him.

According to a statement recorded by the former athlete on Saturday afternoon, they enjoyed drinks at the club before they went to a nearby guest house, where he was found drugged.

“I want to thank the officer known as Asbel Kiprop for highlighting this as a formative message to some of us; this is a real man of God and the ambassador to the nation. It’s not easy for a person of that calibre to come out and reveal such a shameful incident to the public,” Kamoren said.

“His message creates spiritual awareness to the youth, that they should be mindful of their lives whenever they are out there and that what had happened to him should be a lesson to everyone,” he added.

The OCPD, accompanied by the officer in charge of Langas station (OCS) Ngetich Hillary, disclosed that an investigation into the alleged drugging and theft was ongoing, and officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations had taken over the matter.

He said the athlete was advised to seek assistance Safaricom to trace how he lost money on Mpesa.

"Tirop has already reported his claims to Safaricom to trace the movement of his money through the statement. We are doing everything possible to catch her as soon as possible,” Kamoren promised.

The police chief urged the public to avoid interactions with strangers who drug there targets.

Kiprop confirmed that he lost a significant amount of money during the ecnounter with the woman.

Speaking to The Standard in Eldoret on Monday, the softly spoken athlete said he approached the woman to join him for a drink.

He said he did suspect anything unusual about the woman who was sitting alone taking soft drinks.

“I know many people cannot say what I’m telling you about the incident, believe it or not. When I saw the woman at around 1 am, that is Saturday night — you could call it morning — she looked smart, dressed in a yellow sweatshirt and green trousers; she was truly beautiful, and I told myself this is my choice,” Kiprop said.

“I cannot say what exactly happened; all I remember is that we got tired, bought some snacks, and left for a nearby guest house around 4.12 am that very Saturday. Do you know what happened? I found no one but myself in the room the next day at around 3pm,” he recalled.

Kiprop revealed that after regaining consciousness, he realised he had lost Sh8,000 in cash and Sh 35,000 from his mobile money.

“My friend, I have decided to share my story to raise awareness and help the younger generation learn from my mistake and avoid such incidents in the future,” he said.

The athlete who was vomiting and weak, visited Elgon View Hospital, where he received treatment and was discharged before reporting the matter to Langas Police Station on Saturday.