/ 31 May 2013

Pistorius’s lawyers to consider crime scene picture

Oscar Pistorius.
Oscar Pistorius.

The Olympian and Paralympian's lawyer, Kenny Oldwage, said on Friday that he had not seen the photo as he had been in meetings all day, but he and the rest of Pistorius's legal team would discuss the matter.

"We will take this up among ourselves. Beyond that I cannot comment at this time," he said.

The picture was posted on the Sky News website. It shows blood on a toilet seat and a pool of blood on the floor.

The bullet holes Pistorius shot into the bathroom door are marked with stretches of tape, while a panel near the door handle has been taped-up.

The two bullet holes visible in the picture are situated in the middle of the door, below the height of the handle.

Police response
National police spokesperson Brigadier Phuti Setati said on Friday the South African Police Service could not comment on the picture, because it did not know how Sky News came to possess it.

"We don't want to be distracted by these deliberate tactics. All that we want to do is secure conviction, so we are working throughout and investigating professionally."

In April, police confiscated the cellphones of officers working on the Pistorius murder case, when it came to light they had photographed him after his arrest.

It was reported at the time that according to a written response by Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa to a parliamentary question, cellphones were confiscated from 45 police officials.

Boschkop police station management also seized four other official police phones.

The police ministry said disciplinary steps were being taken against the culprits. The phones would be used as evidence.

Lucrative
The former lead investigator in the case, Hilton Botha, reportedly said media houses had offered to pay officers for exclusive pictures of Pistorius after he was arrested for shooting Steenkamp.

A foreign media house reportedly offered a police officer R458 000 for a photograph of the toilet door.

Pistorius has denied murdering Steenkamp, claiming he mistook her for an intruder. The state argued that he killed her following a fight and charged him with premeditated murder.

He was granted bail of R1-million by the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on February 22. His next court appearance is on June 4. – Sapa