Chilling new documentary claims Oscar Pistorius knew exactly what he was doing when he shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, despite the athlete’s unwavering assertions he was trying to protect her.
For the first time, the public can see the bullets retrieved from the murder scene on Valentine’s Day 2013, and Captain Chris Mangena explains how they speak louder than any person’s testimony.
Double-amputee sprinter Pistorius was initially convicted for culpable homicide, a charge similar to manslaughter, and it wasn’t until ballistic experts presented the bullets as crucial evidence that the charge was overturned and replaced with murder.
Four years after the 29-year-old model’s death, Cpt Mangena says it’s clear Pistorius “knew what he was doing” and rejects his robber defence.
“She [Reeva] was standing behind the door, she was not in a seated position,” Mangena says.
“So, it could be that she ran into the toilet and she locked herself in the toilet, she was waiting, facing the door, inside the toilet.
“The first shot was on the hip and after this shot, she fell down. Most likely she could have screamed. She could have screamed and fell down.”
Cpt Mangena goes on to describe how he believes Steenkamp then fell onto a seated position on top of a magazine rack, and the knowledge of this prompted Pistorius to change directions and fire three more shots, including a fatal head shot.
“He fired towards the position of the magazine rack. So, to me, it shows that he knew what he was doing,’ Mangena says.
Body language specialist Cliff Lansley says that when Pistorius “realised he was going to be found guilty” he became emotional in an attempt to “gain sympathy”.
An appeal saw Pistorius’ charge upgraded to murder and he was sentenced to six years, but prosecutors are once again pushing for a longer sentence, deeming the prison term “shockingly lenient”.
