Bloomberg said in a report that the lawyers of disgraced Olympian Oscar Pistorius started to mend his defense at his trial for the alleged murder of his late girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. The defense introduced in court not just one, but two witnesses to testify that they have found the athlete distraught and was pleading for help to bring the fatally injured model to the hospital.
Johan Stander, who is the manager of the gated community where Pistorius lived, was the first person called on the stand and the first one the athlete had called after he shot Steenkamp on Valentine's Day last year. Stander recalled that he, with his daughter in tow, saw Pistorius carrying Steenkamp down the stairs.
"When he reached the bottom of the stairs, my daughter asked him to put Reeva down. He was really crying. He was broken, he was screaming, crying, praying," Stander said.
Carice Viljoen, Stander's daughter, gave her testimony at court and said that she had feared for Pistorius to attempt suicide when the latter went back to his home to find his girlfriend's bag to provide her identification to paramedics.
"I thought he was going to go and shoot himself and I shouted to him to bring the bag," she said.
Viljoen also said in court that a person named Frank could testify their presence at Pistorius' home following the shooting. Frank works at Pistorius' home, she said.
Bloomberg said that the trial adjourned with the testimonies given by the defense' witnesses. Barry Roux had said that he has no more witnesses to present in court to give their testimonies.
Pistorius himself was put on the stand to give his version of what happened on the night he shot Steenkamp. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel reportedly shot down Pistorius' claims, and insisted that the athlete had now presented two arguments.
