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Nigerian-born U.S.-based athlete Oluwabukola “Bukky” Pereira, 30, was fatally shot on May 8, 2026, near Wayne Street in Lockland, Cincinnati, Ohio, during a robbery at her workplace.<\/p>\n
According to an online report from Cincinnati, Pereira appeared to have tried to stop the theft of approximately $1,500 from a local auto business where she was employed.<\/p>\n
Her killing came just eight days before her scheduled graduation on May 16, when she was set to receive her second master’s degree–from Xavier University.<\/p>\n
\n Pereira won the Flying Pig 5K in 2024 and finished fourth in the race this year . “She’s a damn good runner,” said James Michael Lafferty, who became her mentor and sponsor.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 2010, 15-year-old Pereira raced barefoot through Lagos streets during a foot race organized by Coca-Cola West Africa CEO James Michael Lafferty and the Lagos mayor.<\/p>\n Children who could outrun either Lafferty–or the mayor–won prizes. Pereira defeated both, racing through some of Lagos’s roughest neighborhoods .<\/p>\n Lafferty took notice and connected with her family. He told them her athletic abilities could earn her a scholarship and a life in America.<\/p>\n Convinced of her potential, he personally sponsored her immigration to the U.S.<\/p>\n “This kid is the gem of humanity,” Lafferty said. “She didn’t have a bad bone in her body.”<\/p>\n Lafferty, a St. Xavier High School and University of Cincinnati graduate, helped Pereira prepare for the SAT.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Though she excelled academically in Lagos, standardized testing proved challenging. Her family also struggled to navigate American college recruiting websites,<\/p>\n confused about why coaches wouldn’t visit in person.<\/p>\n “How do you explain the internet to someone?” Lafferty recalled telling his wife.<\/p>\n When Pereira arrived in the U.S., she had $10 and a scholarship. Lafferty helped with books and incidentals.<\/p>\n She attended several undergraduate schools before earning: A bachelor’s degree from Southwest Baptist University.<\/p>\n A master’s in communication from the University of Texas El Paso.<\/p>\n A master’s in business administration at Xavier University (in progress)<\/p>\n She planned to pursue another master’s in business analytics that fall.<\/p>\n
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