Pistorius has a new girlfriend: report

Pistorius family spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess did not answer questions about whether murder-accused paralympian Oscar Pistorius had a new girlfriend, Beeld reported on Saturday. According to Beeld, British tabloid newspaper The Sun reported that Pistorius was dating Leah Skye, 19, a student paramedic at the University of Johannesburg. The tabloid called her Pistorius’s “blade stunner” and published a photo of the young brunette. According to the report the two met in December during a holiday in Mozambique. With his athletic triumphs tarnished by the killing of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day last year, Pistorius, now 27, faces possibly being sent to prison until he is older than 50. Meanwhile, the world will be watching today as Oscar Pistorius once South Africa’s golden boy goes on trial for the murder of his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. All eyes will turn to the High Court in Pretoria as the double amputee Paralympic athlete faces charges of premeditated murder and contravening the Firearms Control Act, in a trial that will be broadcast live on television and radio. Steenkamp was shot dead in a toilet in Pistorius’s Pretoria home on Valentine’s Day last year. At his bail hearing, Pistorius’s lawyer submitted he thought he was shooting an intruder. The case has had people talking worldwide with interest from both news and sports growing for the true story of the fallen hero and his beautiful blonde companion. Said author Antony Altbeker: “The interest is largely because it is a human interest story. He is an amazing guy and an amazing athlete but his life and career has come to this horrible moment. “Personally, I am surprised at how big this story is but we have never had a celebrity murder trial of this magnitude before. There is no other explanation, it’s not a story that is particularly unusual or interesting.” After his arrest, Pistorius was granted R1 million bail on February 22 last year, and the case was moved from the magistrate’s court to the high court. Altbeker said in this particular case, the essentials had already been made public. “We know Oscar killed Reeva. The question is, what was going on in his mind at the time of the shooting?” Altbeker said. “There are facts that could decisively show his version is not true, but it is a legal question. The question is - did he do what he did with the intention to kill?” Altbeker said the case could not be compared to other big murder trials, such as the OJ Simpson trial in the US 1995 and the Fred van der Vyver trial in 2007, because Simpson and Van der Vyver denied killing anyone. “We [the South African law fraternity] are going to be under intense scrutiny. This is our chance to show that we are a normal developing country,” he said. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it was ready for the trial. “We are ready the prosecution team already met with all the witnesses,” spokesman Nathi Mncube said. “They have been in various consultations and we are ready to proceed.” Witnesses knew what to expect and they had been prepared. The initial indictment lists 107 witnesses to testify for the State.