Oscar Pistorius to be released on parole on Friday

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Former Paralympic star, Oscar Pistorius, will walk out of prison on Friday after he was granted parole in November last year.

Pistorius was convicted of murdering his model girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp at his Pretoria home in February 2013.

A former Olympic and Paralympic athlete, Pistorius was nicknamed the ‘Blade Runner’ for using prosthetic blades while running.

He made history as the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics, winning gold at the Paralympics. But he fell from grace after fatally shooting his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on the 13th of February 2013 at his home in Pretoria.

In a murder trial that gripped the world’s attention, Pistorius submitted in court that he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and feared for his safety. However the prosecution argued that the murder was premeditated.

He was sentenced to five years imprisonment in 2014 for culpable homicide. The conviction was, however, overturned by the Supreme Court of Appeal in 2015 after finding him guilty of murder.

In June 2015, it was recommended that he be released under correctional supervision and be placed under house arrest. But two days before Pistorius was due to leave prison in August of the same year, former Justice Minister, Michael Masutha intervened.

In 2016, the former athlete was sentenced to six years in prison which was increased to 13 years and 5 months. This was after it was deemed shockingly lenient in an appeal.

The prosecution had called for 15 years which is the minimum prison sentence for murder in the country.

Pistorius will now be released from prison after serving half of his jail sentence.

The decision for a second parole hearing came after his lawyer took his case to the Constitutional Court over errors made by the court in calculating when he would be eligible for parole.

Oscar Pistorius to be released on Friday: Adv Brenda Madumise-Pajibo