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Reeva Steenkamp's father says Pistorius 'must pay for his crime'

South Africa

The father of Reeva Steenkamp, the murdered girlfriend of paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius has told the court that the athlete “must pay” for murdering his daughter.

Pistorius who was convicted in December last year for manslaughter faces a 15-year jail term following the upgrade of his conviction to murder.

Taking the witness stand for the first time since the trial started in March 2014, an emotional Barry Steenkamp told the court that it was very hard for him to forgive the athlete.

“You know people say it takes you two years, three years and you start feeling a little bit better about the whole thing but every day of my life is the same,” Steenkamp said.

Fighting back tears, he said: “My lady, every day, every day of my life – morning noon and night, early hours of the morning, I think of her all the time.”

Barry said he and his wife had depended on their daughter financially and that he had had to jab himself with needles from his diabetes treatment to try to relive the pain his daughter had to go through the night she died.

“I ended up having a stroke and so many things since then have happened … I just don’t wish that to anybody in this world”.

“He has to pay for his crime,” the 73-year-old said adding that the death of their daughter had changed he and his wife forever and all they wanted was justice.

On Monday, psychologist Jonathan Scholtz called by Pistorius’ lawyer said the athlete was “a broken man” who should be hospitalised and not jailed adding that Pistorius had been violent while serving his sentence.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel on Monday also told the court that Pistorius had not shown remorse for shooting and killing Reeva Steenkamp.

The sentencing hearing for Pistorius which started on Monday is expected to run for a week.

Reuters, News Agencies

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