Nairobi, Dec 9 (IANS) Kenya's fatal attraction with the
English Premier League football saw a young Manchester United fan jump
to his death following the team's defeat to Newcastle.

According to Nairobi County Police commander, Benson Kibui, John
Macharia, 28, plunged to his death from the seventh floor of an
apartment block in Pipeline Estate in Nairobi minutes after his
favourite team lost 0-1 to the Magpies at Old Trafford Saturday night.

Eyewitnesses said the United supporter could not take a second
successive home defeat as David Moyes' side plunged 13 points behind
leaders Arsenal.

The Gunners misfortunes also led another ardent Kenyan fan, Suleiman
Alphonso Omondi, 29, to commit suicide in 2009 when his favourite
ironically crashed to the English league titleholders in the UEFA
Champions League semi-final.

Police who have launched an investigation into the latest incident
connected to the two most widely supported foreign clubs in the country
said that Macharia died instantly after hitting the ground with his
head.

"I confirm that we received the news of a young man who could not
stand to see his Manchester United team lose, and instead decided he can
die for the sake of a team that is miles far away in Europe.

"We are treating this matter as a case and since this is not the
first time we have received such cases, I wish to advise football fans
in our country to rather support Harambee Stars than those teams in
England who does not recognize them," Kibui said when confirming the
Saturday incident a day later.

In 2009, Omondi hung himself with an Arsenal jersey in his house
after watching United complete a 4-1 aggregate rout over the Gunners in
their Champions League semi in May that year.

He was living in Nairobi's Embakasi neighborhood that is next to
Pipeline Estate where the latest EPL connected suicide occurred.

"We were watching the match together, and when Arsenal was defeated,
he protested and walked out crying as Man-U fans castigated the losers,"
Omondi Oloo, one of his friends said at the time.

In Kenya, the popularity of the EPL is at an all time high following
years of decline of the domestic league as well as the national team.

These people are just stupid do be honest. Maybe he lost a huge bet or something, but taking your own life because of a football match is just stupid....

Damn you Moyes look at what you've done.

No they are not stupid, but in some of these communities you have nothing to live for except getting money so you can survive and football is the one outlet to all of this.
Though it is idiotic you need to see it from his perspective not yours.

No matter the reason of how anyone dies, they should still be respected. They have their personal lives and all so I think it's unfair to make assumptions. R.I.P. to this guy.

It is just a fucking game god dammit.

reminded me of the man that committed suicide by jumping to his death at a shopping mall in china because his girlfriend wouldn't stop shopping... Crazy people...

Even though it was stupid for him to die, it just shows the passion for football/soccer in developing African countries