Pistorius ‘at home with his family’

JOHANNESBURG: A spokeswoman for Oscar Pistorius’ family says the athlete is at his uncle’s home after being released from jail to move to house arrest.
Speaking outside the home of Pistorius’ uncle, Anneliese Burgess said Tuesday “Oscar is here and Oscar is at home with the family.”
Pistorius was released on parole late on Monday evening, just short of a year into his five-year sentence for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day 2013.
The disgraced Paralympic gold medallist must serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest but still faces an appeal on Nov. 3 by prosecutors who argue that he should have been convicted of murder, not culpable homicide.
Pistorius, 28, who was found guilty of the lesser charge when he fired four shots through a locked bathroom door and hit Steenkamp, will be confined to his uncle Arnold’s home in a wealthy suburb of the capital, Pretoria.
Pistorius had been expected to leave prison on Tuesday, and his early release took media by surprise.
A group of reporters gathered at the house hoping to catch a glimpse of the athlete or a comment from his family. Family spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess said she would release a statement on Pistorius on Tuesday morning.
The Department of Correctional Services said officials at the capital’s Kgosi Mampuru II prison, formerly known as Pretoria Central, had acted to avoid a media scrum at its gates.
“The handling of the actual placement is an operational matter of the local management, and how they handle it is their prerogative,” department spokesman Manelisi Wolela said in a text message. “They carry it out in the best interest of all parties concerned.”
A neighbor who declined to be named told Reuters it was sad that Pistorius was freed having served less than a year in prison.