‘Blade runner’ Oscar Pistorius up for parole 10 years after murdering girlfriend

Former Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius could be granted parole on Friday after spending nearly a decade in a South African prison for killing his girlfriend.

The athlete shot Reeva Steenkamp 10 years ago at his home in Pretoria, the capital, and was jailed for murder in 2016. The killing took the world by surprise as Pistorius fired his girlfriend multiple times through a toilet door at his home on Valentine’s Day 2013.

Reeva Steenkamp, 29, was a law graduate and successful model before her murder.

Pistorius, now 37, testified at trial that he feared there was an intruder in the house and that Ms Steenkamp was still in bed.

He was found guilty of murder in 2015 by the Supreme Court of Appeal after initially being convicted of culpable homicide.

After being unjustly deemed ineligible for early release at a first hearing in March, he was allowed a second opportunity at parole in less than eight months. This was due to an error committed by an appeals court in determining when the sentence formally began.

According to South African law, serious offenders must serve at least half their sentence to be eligible for parole, which Pistorius has done.

“All I can say is that the programs that were contained in his correctional sentence plan were all completed,” Department of Corrections spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo told reporters Friday ahead of the hearing, which was due to take place at the Pretoria prison where Pistorius is being held. “It is now up to the parole board.”

The Department of Corrections has hinted that if Pistorius is granted parole, he might not be released immediately and it is up to the parole board “to work out the placement date.”

Pistorius gained widespread popularity as a “blade runner.” He relied on prosthetics to compete in athletic competitions.

His lower legs were amputated when Pistorius was less than a year old.

At the Paralympics, he won several gold medals for South Africa. At the London 2012 Olympics, he also competed against non-disabled athletes.