Oscar Pistorius injured in fight with fellow prisoner
The former Paralympic champion sustained minor injuries after being involved in a scuffle over the use of a pay phone in prison.
Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius, who was imprisoned for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has been injured in a prison brawl. It has been reported that an altercation with another inmate occurred over the use of a public telephone. According to prison authorities, Pistorius, 31, “sustained a bruise” in the altercation. The fight came just a few days after the former sportsman’s sentence was doubled to 13 years and five months.
Tempers flare over telephone
The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) said on Tuesday that the fight occurred while Pistorius was making a call on a pay phone in the special care unit of the Atteridgeville Correctional Centre, near Pretoria.
“It is alleged that he was involved in an altercation with another inmate over the use of a public phone in the special care unit‚ where both offenders are detained at the Atteridgeville Correctional Centre”, said DCS spokesman Singabakho Nxumalo. “The injury is minor but we at the department take incidents like this seriously and want to prevent any altercations.”
Incident to be investigated
According to Nxumalo, an inquiry will be held to “establish the facts and to ensure that appropriate action is taken as incidents of assault are not allowed.” An internal investigation involving Pistorius, the other inmate, witnesses and guards is currently underway.
'The outcome of the investigation would determine if any remedial action would be undertaken against any of the inmates involved,” Nxumalo told ABC News.
In July 2016, the South African was sentenced to six years in jail for murdering his girlfriend in the early hours of Valentine’s Day, 2013 . Pistorius claimed he mistook her for an intruder. On 24 November 2017, a South African court increased Pistorius’s jail sentence to 13 years and five months.