Gerrie Nel, the state prosecutor who has cross-examined defendant Oscar Pistorius, has ended today with the argument that the latter has killed his late girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in a fit of rage, Bloomberg said. Nel challenged Pistorius' version of the events in the five of the seven days he took the stand in the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa's capital. Pistorius claimed that he thought that he was shooting at an intruder who was locked behind a toilet cubicle door in his bathroom on Valentine's Day last year.
According to Nel, Pistorius knew he shot Steenkamp through the locked door following a nasty argument. The state prosecutor even cited neighbors who have heard shouting and a woman's screems a little before 3 in the morning that day.
"Your version is not only untruthful but it is so improbable that it couldn't have happened. Who should we blame for the black talon round that ripped through her?," Nel said as he wrapped his argument.
Nel pointed out earlier on that Pistorius' claim yesterday that he had fired four shots through the locked door accidentally contradicted his original claim of self-defense. Nel insisted that should this be the case, then Pistorius was claiming a defense of involuntary action.
During his testimony, Pistorius also claimed that police have tampered the scene of the incident, Bloomberg said. Nel debunked this claim, saying that the duvet the defendant said was placed on the floor from the bed had blood spatter matching the line of droplets on the carpet next to the bedding.
Bloomberg said that by tomorrow, presiding judge Thokozile Masipa will be giving a decision on the prosecution's request for the trial to be adjourned until May 5 due to the series of South African holidays over the next three weeks.
Pistorius, who is known in the sporting world as the Blade Runner due to his J-shaped prosthetics, had been freed on a 1 million rand bail, or $96,000, since last year, the news agency added.
