Marathon cheat faces fraud charge after hiding in crowd for majority of race

A marathon runner is facing fraud charges after jumping from the crowd within 1km of the finish line to falsely claim second place in a 42km event in Kenya.

Cunning athlete Julius Njogu thought he had outsmarted race organisers to claim a $7000 prize when he breezed past a rival and seemingly fought his way into second place during the closing stages of the Nairobi International Marathon.

But race organisers soon became suspicious when he crossed the finish line and showed no signs of the fatigue etched on the faces and bodies of his sweat-soaked rivals.

An investigation was immediately launched with race organisers discovering the 28-year-old did not start the race but had in fact hidden among spectators before joining the fray with less than 1km to run.

Njogu has since been arrested and is facing fraud charges which could see his short cut to the finish line end in a fast ride to a prison cell.