Oscar Pistorius, the infamous Blade Runner, has been released from Atteridgeville Correctional Centre and taken to his new home on his uncle’s estate in Pretoria, 11 years after he brutally murdered his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
Pistorius was set free on January 5, 2024, after being granted an early release by a parole board review that determined he was fit for social reintegration.
While parole officers assured the public that Pistorius would be treated no differently from other inmates, he was allowed a private exit, avoiding a throng of TV crews and journalists who were waiting for him at the main gate. One journalist close to him revealed that the former Paralympian is now a greying, overweight smoker.
Upon his release, images emerged of the cramped and dingy conditions in which Pistorius lived. His prosthetic legs were seen propped up in the corner of the cell, while family photos were displayed on the wall.
“The announcement came at around 8:30am, indicating corrections officials had released the world-famous double-amputee Olympic runner in the early hours,” reported a source. Pistorius’s release from prison has caused widespread controversy, with many feeling that he served too short a sentence for taking a life.
Meanwhile, Steenkamp’s mother June, who has been vocal in her grief, said in a statement that she is the one “serving a life sentence” in her grief and wished that the release of the man who murdered her daughter would help bring her some peace.
