Man held after alleged offer to Pistorius

A MAN, 33, was arrested in Pretoria yesterday afternoon soon after he received a deposit of R40 000 for his services, which purportedly included having Oscar Pistorius’s murder case destroyed.

Pistorius is serving a sentence for shooting his girlfriend‚ Reeva Steenkamp‚ three years ago. He is facing re-sentencing after the Constitutional Court rejected his bid to appeal against his murder conviction.

The man allegedly masqueraded as an official from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and demanded R250 000 from Pistorius‚ promising him that he would ensure the murder case was squashed‚ police said yesterday.

The Hawks were called in and an operation was set up. The suspect was arrested. He has been charged with corruption. Police said further charges could not be ruled out.

He will appear in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Monday.