The South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius, who was convicted of murdering his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp by shooting her through a locked bathroom door, has been injured in a prison brawl, it has been reported.
Pistorius could lose privileges such as being able to use a prison shop and make phone calls if he is found to have started the fight, jail bosses told MailOnline today.
Pistorius, who had both legs amputated below the knee at the age of 11 and became the world’s most famous Paralympic sprinter before the killing of Steenkamp, had his murder sentence increased from six to 13 years last month.
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Pistorius was reportedly lining up to use a pay phone when he began fighting with the other man, described as an inmate “he knows well” by jail authorities.
The man the Paralympian fought with is also detained on the special-care unit “where inmates with special needs and different sexual orientation are held for their own protection,” jail spokesman Singabakho Nxumalo told MailOnline.
“As standard operating procedure regarding cases of alleged assaults, the Department of Correctional Services has launched an internal investigation into the matter to establish the facts and to ensure that appropriate action is taken as incidents of assault are not allowed. We want to know that proper security protocols were followed by prison staff,” Nxumalo from the Department of Correctional Services said.
“If Oscar Pistorius is found to be at fault, he could lose his privileges and be re-classified if he is no longer considered ‘low risk.’”
Pistorius is being held at the Atteridgeville Correctional Center, near his family’s home in South Africa’s capital Pretoria.
Pistorius’s brother Carl quoted Winnie the Pooh in a tweet after news of the fight emerged.
