The family of former South African sprint runner Oscar Pistorius denied the allegations that he used an air rifle and a cricket bat to attack his girlfriend before he fatally shot her. The claims were published on a book written by two amateur sleuths.
According to the Daily Mail, the latest book titled, "Oscar vs The Truth" was written by two brothers, Calvin and Thomas Mollett, who have previously examined forensic evidence of the case. They claimed Oscar Pistorius attacked her with an air rifle and chased her with the said bat. On the book, it stated Reeva Steenkamp's two injuries on her back matched the tip of a cricket bat he used. The other wound found on her arm suggests the same and matches the hole fired by an air rifle.
Supporting to their claims were forensic photographs showing the wounds and injuries from Reeva's body. They accused Pistorius beat her with a cricket bat in range, and since the handle has "ripped and covered with blood', they suggest a struggle happened. However, Pistorius' family said, the claims were unfounded.
On a statement issued by Pistorius' family, they called the allegations, "attention-seeking‚ money-making exercise" and the two authors "with detective fantasies," Times Live cited. The family also said it had been forced to deny the allegations after the book received widespread media attention.
Reeva Steenkamp, 29, died at Pistorius' Pretoria home in the early hours of February 14, 2013, after he fired four shots at her through a locked bathroom door. He claimed he believed there was an intruder in his home. The family added those are "outrageous allegations" and are not supported by any evidence.
The ex-Paralympian was convicted of manslaughter but his conviction was upgraded to murder on appeal by the state December last year, the Guardian reported. He initially faces 15 years in prison when he was sentenced June, but he is expected to argue for a lesser sentence.
Pistorius is currently serving the remainder of the five-year sentence under house arrest and he stays at his uncle's home in Pretoria.
