Punjab Police on Wednesday said that it arrested the man who allegedly rammed his car into 114-year-old legendary marathon runner Fauja Singh, which resulted in the latter’s death.
According to the police, the accused has been identified as 26-year-old Amritpal Singh Dhillon. He works in Canada and returned to India on June 23 for the construction of his house. His sister and mother are also settled in Canada.
“After hitting Fauja Singh, he fled from the spot and parked his car in a garage. We arrested him from his house yesterday,” SSP Rural Harvinder Singh Virk said.
The man didn’t knew the person he rammed his car into was the legendary Fauja Singh. It was only after watching the news on TV, he got to know about it, the police said.
Singh was struck by Dhillon’s vehivle while crossing a road in his native village, Beas Pind, in Punjab on Monday. He was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries.
Fauja Singh was a renowned marathon runner. He began running marathons at 89 to cope with the grief of his son’s death in an accident and went on to complete several prestigious races, including the London Marathon and the Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
At 100, he became the first centenarian to complete a full marathon, cementing his place in history.