South African star Olympic and Paralympics athlete Oscar Pistorius, "Bladed Runner," was charged with the murder of his girlfriend on Thursday and is scheduled to appear at a Pretoria court on Friday, police announced.
According to police, Pistorius, 26, allegedly shot and killed his 30-year-old girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his home in a gated community in Pretoria Thursday morning. There have been conflicting reports as to what occurred between the couple, with police describing the event as a domestic issue.
The Guardian reported that police spokeswoman Denise Beukes said that earlier reports that Pistorius had been surprised by his girlfriend and had shot her thinking she was an intruder did not come from police. Instead, Beukes said that police had received reports from neighbors of shouting and screaming coming from the home earlier in the evening.
Police stated that a 9mm pistol was found at the scene and that the 26-year-old had been taken into custody. Although the star sprinter was due in court today, officials announced that his appearance was postponed until tomorrow, the Guardian reported. He is scheduled to appear at Pretoria Magistrates' Court at 9 a.m. local time (2 a.m. EST).
British publication The Telegraph reported that Steenkamp was shot in the head and hand by a gun licensed to the athlete. The model's agency, Ice Model Management, issued a statement saying that the staff is "absolutely shocked and devastated by the news."
"Reeva has been with the Ice family fro some seven years now and she was a wonderful, beautiful, and caring soul and will be missed immensely," the statement continued. "It is indeed a very sad day for all those that loved and treasured her, our hearts are broken. Our thoughts, prayers and condolences are with her family and friends."
According to Sky News, Steenkamps agent Sarit Tomlinson said the couple's relationship seemed "harmonious" and that the two "had only been together a couple of months" and had a "really healthy, fabulous relationship."
The star runner, who was well-liked by many athletes, was known to own several guns, including the 9mm handgun and a "machine gun," the Telegraph reported. Pistorius' home country of South Africa has some of the world's highest rates of violent crimes and homeowners are known to carry weapons to defend themselves.
A tweet sent by Pistorius last November is being widely retweeted in the wake of the shooting, the Telegraph reported. Pistorius, who appeared to fear for his safety, tweeted "Nothing like getting home to hear the washing machine on and thinking its an intruder to go into full combat recon mode into the pantry! waa."
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