CAPE TOWN – South African Olympic star Oscar Pistorius has been sentenced to six years in prison for the murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.
The verdict, less than half of the typical 15-year minimum sentence he was expected to receive, comes after his five-year conviction for 2013 manslaughter was thrown out and changed to murder last December on appeal. Pistorius has already served one year in jail.
He was immediately taken to jail after the sentencing, the UPI reported on Wednesday.
Barring appeal, the sentencing ends the saga that began on in February 2013 – when the Olympic sprinter fired four shots through his bathroom door, killing Steenkamp.
The amputee track star said he thought Steenkamp was an intruder and shot in self-defense. The prosecution argued Pistorius could be violent and murdered his girlfriend after a late-night argument.
