Oscar Pistorius.
Convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius did not deliberately hurt himself in prison but slipped in his cell, his brother Carl said on Sunday.
“I know that there are reports saying that he tried to injure himself – they [are] completely untrue and sensational,” Carl Pistorius tweeted on Sunday. “He slipped in his cell and injured himself, nothing serious.”
Earlier on Sunday, correctional services spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo confirmed Pistorius was back in prison after being rushed to hospital following a medical emergency. “The official report is that he [Pistorius] made a call [for help] after falling off his bed,” he said.
Another correctional services spokesperson, Manelisi Wolela, confirmed Pistorius had suffered “minor injuries on his wrists” but said, “Oscar Pistorius denied speculations of a suicide attempt”.
Carl Pistorius asked people not to believe the media reports, labelling them “crazy”, “unreliable” and “baseless”.
The older Pistorius said that he had visited Oscar over the weekend with “Jenna”. “He is doing well given the circumstances. He was in good spirit.”
Although it was unclear to whom the ‘Jenna’ in the tweet was referring, during previous court appearances an ex-girlfriend of the Paralympian, Jenna Edkins, was seen supporting his family.
“It was great to see him. He sends love to everyone, especially Aimee,” Carl Pistorius said on Twitter. Aimee is the younger sibling in the Pistorius clan.
Nxumalo said Pistorius was taken to Pretoria’s Kalafong Hospital, following his call for help on Saturday. Medical practitioners were called to assess him at the time and made the decision to have him receive treatment outside of prison.
On Sunday morning, Nxumalo confirmed Pistorius was “back in our care now”.
City Press reported that two warders with knowledge of the hospital section said [knife] blades had been found in Pistorius’ cell during a search on Saturday afternoon.
But Nxumalo said that report was being treated as “a mere allegation”. He said Pistorius’ cell was searched in the past following allegations of preferential treatment.
This weekend marks the start of the Rio Olympics; prior to the murder of Reeva Steenkamp in February 2013, Pistorius was the country’s foremost Paralympian. He also took part in the Summer Olympics. – News24