Pistorius suicide bid ruled out
OSCAR Pistorius was taken from Kgosi Mampuru prison to Kalafong Hospital and then to Steve Biko Academic at the weekend.
While social media and certain newspapers were suggesting attempted suicide, the official version is that he hurt himself when he fell out of bed, and hospital officials described his ailment as stomach problems.
Pistorius’s brother Carl Pistorius posted on Twitter that all was fine with Oscar: “Jenna and I have just been to see Oscar and he is doing well given the circumstances. He was in good spirits. I know that there are reports saying he tried to injure himself; these are completely untrue and sen- sational.
“All other crazy and unreli- able news stories are also baseless. He slipped in his cell and injured himself. Nothing serious. Please don’t believe the media reports. It was great to see him. He sends love to everyone, especially Aimee (his sister).”
It was not clear which Jenna Carl was referring to, but Oscar had an ex-girlfriend called Jenna.
The hospital dash coincided with the start of the Olympic Games in Rio, something many have suggested must have had an emotional effect on Pistorius, who was a star of the last Olympics in London.
However, Correctional Services has denied he tried to harm himself, while Carl aside, the Pistorius family is keeping silent on the matter, with family spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess referring enquiries to Correctional Services.
The department was willing only to confirm that Pistorius suffered minor injuries to his wrists and these were attended to at the prison where he is serving his six-year jail term before he was sent to Kalafong for further treatment.
According to the department, he was later taken back under escort to his prison cell. The department said it would not discuss any prisoner’s con- dition with the media.
A staff member at Kalafong told the Pretoria News: “What we have in the hospital record book is a medical illness; he had come in complaining of stomach pain.”
According to media reports yesterday, razor blades were found in Pistorius’s cell and there were claims he was bleeding, his wrists were bandaged by prison staff, and an ambulance was called.
The Department of Health’s Steve Mabona said Pistorius was taken to Kalafong on Saturday around lunchtime, and subsequently referred to Steve Biko for “further assessment”. He returned to the prison the same day.
Fans of Pistorius were supportive in online messages, a woman called Sera saying he must remain strong. Another family from England said their thoughts were with Pistorius, especially while they were watching the Olympics.
“You should have been there,” they posted.
Pistorius was the darling of the 2012 London Olympics, setting records in the Paralympics and being the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics.
An investigation is under way into items allegedly found in his cell, including prescription medicine.
During his resentencing, a nurse working in the prison hospital testified that inmates’ medication was strictly monitored through the prison hospital.
The State gave notice about two weeks ago of its intention to request leave to appeal against what they see as Pistorius’s “lenient” sentence for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. No date has yet been set for Judge Thokozile Masipa to hear the application.
Prosecutor Gerrie Nel wants the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein to increase the sentence. This will be the second time the prosecution heads to that court. It won the first round, when five judges overturned Pistorius’s earlier conviction on culpable homicide and replaced it with a verdict of murder.