Kenyan Man United fan commits suicide after loss to Arsenal
Shocking pictures have emerged on social media of a die-hard Manchester United fan who is reported to have committed suicide after Arsenal knocked his team from FA Cup last Monday.
The fan has been identified as James Macharia Teresia, 42, after an ID card was discovered from his pockets. The pictures show a body lying on a beach with a national ID card and some cash amounting to Sh300.
The images were posted on Twitter on Friday by Stephen Mukangai, a sports commentator of a local Kiswahili FM radio station.
“Hizi ni picha za shabiki wa Man United aliyejiua baada ya timu yake kushindwa na Arsenal,” read the caption accompanying the pictures.
Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale responded: “Let’s be sportsmen. So sad someone took away his life because Man Utd lost to Arsenal.”
FANATICAL FOLLOWING
FA Cup title holders Arsenal beat Man United 2-1 to progress to the semi-finals that will be played at the iconic Wembley Stadium in England.
Despite being more than 5,000km away, a number of supporters of Manchester United and Arsenal have in recent years committed suicide in Kenya and Uganda whenever ‘their’ teams lose.
In 2009, an Arsenal fan took his life after his favorite team was knocked out of the Champions League following a 4-1 aggregate defeat by Manchester United.
Two weeks ago, a Ugandan fan committed suicide after he lost a bet when Arsenal were beaten 3-1 by Monaco in the Champions League.
Both Arsenal and Man United command fanatical following in East Africa partly due to low standards of the game in the region.