Oscar Pistorius has the “money, means and motive” to flee the country over the alleged murder of his girlfriend, prosecutors said today.
A judge was ruling whether or not the Paralympic star could be released before his trial for killing 29-year-old model and law graduate Reeva Steenkamp.
He is charged with one count of premeditated murder after shooting Ms Steenkamp three times through a locked bathroom door at his home on Valentine’s Day.
During a dramatic four-day hearing Pistorius’s lawyers argued the star should not be facing a murder charge as he claimed he shot Ms Steenkamp accidentally after mistaking her for a burglar.
He said he heard a noise from the bathroom as he fetched a fan from his balcony, and fired in self-defence.
But prosecutor Gerrie Nel said the state’s case “was strong” and insisted the athlete’s explanation of events was “improbable”.
They said the athlete planned to kill her after a heated row, strapping on his prosthetic legs and walking more than 20 feet to shoot her as she cowered in a lavatory.
Pistorius’s lawyers had to argue there were “exceptional circumstances” for him to be released.
They said it would be impossible for him to flee because he is a world-famous Paralympic athlete.
They said his legs needed constant maintenance and he needed medical attention for his stumps.
But Mr Nel said the runner was a flight risk and that the court could not treat a famous person any differently.
“Lots of people have escaped bail. Lots of important people have fled, are still fleeing justice,” he said.
“The degree of violence used in this case is horrific,” and referring to South Africa president Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nation address about violence against women and children, he said: “It’s the duty of the court to not only pay lip service to how serious these kinds of crimes are.” He added it was “a possibility” that Pistorius might change his face to avoid being recognised if he fled abroad.
The officer in charge of the case, Hilton Botha, was dramatically ditched by the National Prosecuting Authority yesterday after it emerged the veteran detective is accused of drunkenly shooting at a mini-bus full of people.
Colleagues claim the charges are “trumped up”, while Botha denied he had been drinking and said he and two officers were investigating a case and tried to pull the taxi over, and when the driver refused to stop, they shot at the wheels.
He has been criticised for bungling testimony in which he admitted a number of failings in handling the Pistorius case, and has now been replaced by Lieutenant General Vineshkumar Moonoo.
Pistorius’s lawyer Barry Roux tried to discredit the detective, saying he was not a credible witness.
