Oscar Pistorius is 'confident he will WIN his bid to serve minimum sentence for murdering Reeva Steenkamp' as photo emerges of him smiling before his prison term 

  • State prosecutors are challenging Pistorius' six year sentence
  • They will argue it is too lenient and less than half the 15-years they sought
  • Pistorius murdered his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day 2013
  • Is serving his six year term at 'cushy' Atteridgeville Correctional Centre

By Sarah Dean For Mailonline

Published: 09:23 EST, 12 January 2017 | Updated: 09:30 EST, 12 January 2017

Oscar Pistorius and his family are confident that he will win his final appeal to serve the minimum jail term for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, a friend has claimed.

The South African Paralympic gold medallist, who is serving a six year sentence for murdering model Steenkamp on Valentine's Day 2013, is said to have a 'positive outlook' about next month's appeal hearing, a source told The Sun.

State prosecutors are challenging Pistorius' latest six year sentence, arguing it was too lenient as it was less than half the 15-years they sought.

Pistorius' family have stood by him throughout his controversial and lengthy legal battle and in August his uncle Arnold shared a photo showing a side to the 30-year-old sport star that is not often seen.

Family photo: Oscar Pistorius is pictured (bottom right) with a beard and glasses in a rare photo of his relatives all together shared by his uncle Arnold (back centre)

A bearded Pistorius is pictured wearing glasses and a shirt alongside Arnold and his aunt Lois, who raised him after the death of his mother in 2002.

His four female cousins, their partners and children are also seen in the smiling family photo.

In November, Pistorius was moved to a 'cushy' jail with bathtubs and a vegetable patch as authorities claimed it was better suited to his rehabilitation.

He was switched to the Atteridgeville correctional centre, on the outskirts of South Africa's capital Pretoria, from the nearby Kgosi Mampuru remand centre.

'The issue is about access to rehabilitation programmes,' department for correctional services spokesman Manelisi Wolela said.

'A remand detention facility has no rehabilitation programme because everyone there is assumed innocent and therefore cannot be subjected to rehabilitation programmes.'

Oscar Pistorius (R) and his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp are pictured here together in Johannesburg, February 7, 2013. The photo was taken a week before Pistorius shot her dead at his home in Pretoria

Shamed Paralympic gold medalist Oscar Pistorius walked across the courtroom without his prosthetic legs during the third day of his resentencing hearing at Pretoria High Court on 15 June 2016

The South African government confirmed that the former Paralympian had been moved at his request.

Pistorius will be one of the longest serving inmates to be held at Atteridgeville and one of only a handful of prisoners to be convicted of murder.

The jail takes only 'low risk, non-violent' offenders serving sentences of zero to six years.

Although the former track star was convicted of repeatedly shooting defenceless Steenkamp, then 29, through a locked door, he is considered by prison management to be 'low risk'. 

The athlete, known as the Blade Runner for his carbon-fibre prosthetics, was treated for wrist injuries in August 2016 but prison services said he denied trying to kill himself.

Pistorius was sentenced to six years in prison in July after being found guilty of murdering Steenkamp on appeal in December 2015.

The track star originally received a five-year sentence for a manslaughter conviction, that was upgraded to murder on appeal.

Pistorius says he shot dead Steenkamp by accident after mistaking her for an intruder in his house.

The former athlete's prison transfer came just a month after officials confirmed he had been secretly freed to join his family at a boutique hotel for a memorial service for his grandmother.

He was allowed out of the maximum security prison for four hours, under armed guard, for the celebration of Gerti Pistorius's life last month.

The shamed Olympian was given 'compassionate leave' to attend the event because he was considered 'low risk' by management at Kgosi Mampuru jail.

But as news of Pistorius' leave emerged, reaction appeared predominantly negative amid accusations that the athlete's 'white privilege' and status had led to him getting special treatment.

Cushy: Oscar Pistorius celebrated his 30th birthday at the comfortable Atteridgeville Correctional Centre, in Pretoria, pictured, surrounded by cards and letters from fans

The South African sprinter refused to eat prison food at the Kgosi Mampuru II jail, pictured, amid reports of a 'bounty' on his head at the jail that is home to 8,000 prisoners

High security: Pistorius' spent a year at the cramped Kgosi Mampuru II jail, pictured, where the one-time sprinter lived in daily fear of being beaten by inmates, a lawyer told MailOnline

 

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