Former Olympian Oscar Pistorius was originally sentenced to five years in jail after killing his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, by firing four hollow point bullets through a locked bathroom door on Valentine’s Day 2013. The shamed double-amputee athlete was initially cleared of murder but was convicted of culpable homicide, maintaining he believes he thought Steenkamp was an intruder just taking a dump in his bathroom.
However, in December of 2015, a South African appeals court overturned the manslaughter verdict and found the six-time Paralympic gold medallist guilty of murder. As we’re coming up on one month before Pistorius’ sentencing trial in June, a pair of forensic analysts have found damning evidence that would undeniably indicate Oscar’s intent to murder.
In their book Oscar vs The Truth, Calvin and Thomas Mollett claim that Oscar may have beaten Steenkamp with a cricket bat before firing shots into her hip, head and arm. They point to bruising on Steenkamp’s back that was previously overlooked, indicating that she was running away from Pistorius before he struck her.
According to the Daily Maverick, the forensic analysts wrote in their book:
“Oscar went after her with a cricket bat – infuriated that she locked herself away from him – and to scare and frighten her, he hit the door with the cricket bat about two to three times and also hit the steel plate against the bathtub wall.”
During the initial trial, Pistorius admitted that he used the cricket back to barge down the door, but the bruising over his girlfriend’s body leaves gaping holes in his version of the events.
As Metro points out, the forensic analysts claim the handle was torn and stretched, and tests with a similar bat failed to produce any wear after 20 strikes.
We’ll see how this evidence plays in court. Something tells me Pistorius’ former plush prison cell will be exchanged for something a little more…cramped.
[h/t Daily Maverick]