Double-amputee Olympian Oscar Pistorius’ sentence for the murder of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp was extended to 13 years and five months by a court Friday.
South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal increased the sprinter’s prison term after prosecutors successfully argued his original sentence of six years was “shockingly lenient.”
The so-called “Blade Runner” was not in court for Friday’s ruling where the court handed down the minimum 15-year sentence prescribed for murder in South Africa, and subtracted the time Pistorius had already served in prison.
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Pistorius, 30, fired a gun multiple times through a closed bathroom door on Valentine’s Day in 2013. The athlete said he thought Steenkamp was a dangerous intruder.
Relatives of the victim, who was a model and law graduate, welcomed the news.
“This is an emotional thing for them. They just feel that their trust in the justice system has been confirmed this morning,” said Tania Koen, a spokeswoman for the Steenkamp family.
It was the second successful challenge from prosecutors. In 2015, they overturned Judge Thokozile Masipa’s original verdict of culpable homicide — or manslaughter — and secured a murder conviction.
Masipa then sentenced Pistorius to six years in prison, a term just one year longer than her original sentence for manslaughter. The country’s National Prosecuting Authority quickly said it would appeal, calling that term “disproportionate,” “shockingly too lenient” and “an injustice.”
There is no death penalty in South Africa.
Pistorius, who is in a prison near the capital, Pretoria, was treated in hospital last year for injuries to his wrists.
