Pistorious Reeva
The athlete’s arrest in the killing of 29-year-old Steenkamp has shocked South Africa, where Pistorius was a national hero dubbed the Blade Runner for his high-tech prosthetics and revered for overcoming his disability to compete in the London Games.
The family’s statement came after there were claims that the athlete ‘carried his dying girlfriend downstairs and tried to resuscitate her as he desperately attempted to save her life’.
Pistorius reportedly cradled Miss Steenkamp, who he allegedly shot four times, as he tried to stop her dying, performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on her.
The athlete is said to be on suicide watch due to fears the blade runner might take his own life over charges for the ‘pre-planned’ murder of his model girlfriend.
Pistorius, wept after being charged with shooting dead law graduate Reeva Steenkamp, 29, on Valentine’s Day, is being held at Brooklyn Police Station prison in Pretoria.
A source said: ‘Oscar is innocent but he feels as though he has descended into hell. He is absolutely devastated and struggling to deal with his emotions.
Oscar Pistorius’s father, Henke, reaches out to his son after his emotional court appearance