South Africa: Oscar Pistorius to remain in jail

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa

South African Paralympian Oscar Pistorius will remain in jail after the parole review board delayed the decision to release and place him under house arrest on Monday.

Local media quoted attorney Brian Webber, one of Pistorius’s legal representatives, confirming the new development.

Webber reportedly said the matter will now be referred back to the parole board of the Pretoria prison where Pistorius is currently being held.

Pistorius was supposed to have been released from prison last month after serving 10 months of his five-year jail term but Justice Minister Michael Masutha blocked the release.

The minister said the Pretoria prison's parole board had made the decision to release him prematurely as he had not served a sixth of his sentence.

The 28-year-old double amputee athlete was convicted last year of shooting and killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, at his Pretoria home on Feb. 14, 2013.

Pistorius fired four shots at the closed door of his bathroom, instantly killing Steenkamp, whom he said he mistook for an intruder.

According to South African law, those convicted under the specific section of the country’s Criminal Procedures Act – as Pistorius was – are entitled to be released from prison after serving out one sixth of their jail term.

Pistorius was expected to serve the remaining part of his sentence under house arrest at his uncle’s luxurious Pretoria home.

His parole process is now expected to start afresh and could take months.

The state will appeal Pistorius’s manslaughter conviction next month, as it seeks a murder conviction.

Popularly known as the “Blade Runner”, Pistorius was born without fibulas in both of his legs. Before completing his first year, he had to have both his lower limbs amputated.

He became famous in 2004 at the age of 17 after winning a gold medal at the Athens Paralympics Games. He made history in 2012 when he became the first amputee runner to compete in the Olympics.