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Friday, 11 April 2014

'Reeva was standing behind the toilet door talking to you when you shot her'- Prosecutors say

Oscar Pistorius' three-day cross-examination reached a dramatic climax today as the world-famous athlete was accused of deliberately shooting his girlfriend through a toilet door as the couple talked and argued in the early hours of Valentine's Day last year.
"You knew that Reeva went behind the door and you shot at her,' Mr Nel said. 'You shot at her knowing she was behind the door.'
Pistorius denied the charge as prosecutor Gerrie Nel pushed the Paralympic champion on his version of the exact events in the seconds before he killed Reeva Steenkamp by firing four times through the stall door in his bathroom with his 9mm pistol on February 14, 2013. 

 Mr Nel challenged the double-amputee sprinter repeatedly as to why Miss Steenkamp failed to scream when she was shot four times.Continue...


Mr Nel, one of South Africa's top attorneys, said it was beyond belief that 29-year-old law graduate and model Miss Steenkamp would have remained silent in the tiny cubicle with an armed Pistorius shouting and screaming in the adjoining bathroom.

Mr Nel later followed up with his central accusation - that the couple had an argument and Steenkamp fled to the toilet pursued by Pistorius, who then shot her through the closed wooden door.

Pistorius denied the accusation, before the court adjourned until Monday morning.

Pistorius, who claims he shot Miss Steenkamp by mistake thinking she was a nighttime intruder behind a toilet door in his bathroom, faces life in prison if convicted of murder.

Pistorius says he shouted at what he thought was an intruder in his house and also at Miss Steenkamp to call the police.
Mr Nel said that if that were the case, she would not have stood up against the door. She would have retreated away from it. And she would have responded to Pistorius, the chief prosecutor said.
'I don't think anybody could say where she would have stood,' Pistorius replied. 

Mr Nel led the double-amputee runner through his own account of what happened in the moments before he shot Miss Steenkamp.
Pistorius said he heard a noise in the bathroom and moved down a hallway on his stumps towards the bathroom while screaming to his girlfriend - who he claims he had believed was in the bedroom - to get down and call the police.

He said he then heard what sounded like the toilet door slamming, then kept quiet as he reached the bathroom entrance, then heard a noise in the toilet that he perceived to be the sound of wood on wood, which he said made him think someone was opening the toilet door - which he said fit badly in the frame - to attack him. 

And then, Pistorius said, he opened fire.

At each stage, Mr Nel argued that the account was improbable, questioning why Pistorius did not establish where Miss Steenkamp was and make sure she was okay, and why he would approach the alleged danger zone if he felt vulnerable on his stumps.

Mr Nel said: 'If you spoke to Reeva, the two of you could have taken lots of other steps.'
Pistorius said he thought the perceived threat could strike at any moment: 'There was no time.'
During the cross-examination, Pistorius said Steenkamp did not scream at any point during the incident.

However, the 27-year-old track star said that he may not have heard her cries because of his ears ringing from the first shot.
Several people living nearby have testified to hearing a woman's terrified screams before and during a volley of shots.
'She's awake. She's in the toilet. You're shouting. You're screaming. You're three metres from her. She would have responded. She would not have been quiet, Mr Pistorius,' Mr Nel said.
'She didn't respond, my Lady,' Pistorius replied, addressing judge Thokozile Masipa.
'Did she scream at all whilst you shot her four times?' Mr Nel continued.
'No, my Lady.'
'Are you sure? Are you sure, Mr Pistorius, that Reeva did not scream after the first shot?' Mr Nel continued. 'Are you, Mr Pistorius?'
After a brief silence, Pistorius said: 'My Lady, I wish she had let me know she was there.'
'After you fired the first shot, did she scream?' Mr Nel asked.
'No, my Lady.'
'Are you sure? Would you have heard her?' Mr Nel asked.
'I don't think I would have heard her.'
'Exactly.'
'A gunshot went off, my ears were ringing,' Pistorius said.
'How can you exclude the fact she was screaming if you couldn't hear?' Mr Nel asked.
'If I couldn't hear it then I couldn't hear,' Pistorius retorted.
'No, you said, Mr Pistorius, she never screamed. You couldn't hear. You're just saying that,' Mr Nel said.
'That is what I'm saying,' Pistorius replied.
'No, that's not what you're saying. You're saying she didn't scream,' Mr Nel followed up.
'My Lady, the sound of that gunshot in the bathroom, you wouldn't have heard anyone scream. The decibels of the gunshot, I don't believe you would have heard anyone scream. When I had finished firing the gunshots, I was screaming and I couldn't hear my own voice.'

Pistorius' return to the witness box today followed a week of testimony in which the double-amputee runner said he killed Miss Steenkamp by accident after mistaking her for an intruder in his home last year.

Mr Nel challenged the athlete's statements that he was worried about crime before the fatal shooting.
The prosecutor examined the details of the alarm system at Pistorius' house, questioning why the athlete would believe an intruder had broken into his home when he had extensive security measures, including interior and exterior sensors. 

Pistorius said he activated the sensors on the home alarm system before going to sleep on the night he killed Miss Steenkamp, but feared that building contractors doing work on his house may have moved some of the security beacons.

The prosecutor said Pistorius had not mentioned immediately after the shooting that he had fears that building contractors had removed some of the security beacons, specifically near the bathroom window where he allegedly thought an intruder may have gained access on the night he killed Miss Steenkamp.

Querying why Pistorius had not mentioned those fears earlier, Mr Nel said the athlete was trying to build a story to explain his fears of an intruder and therefore a mistaken shooting.
'This is the biggest example of you tailoring your evidence,' Mr Nel said. Pistorius denied he was fabricating a story.
Pistorius also said he was struggling to give clear testimony because he was tired, prompting the judge to ask him if he was too tired to proceed with a tough cross-examination from the chief prosecutor.
Pistorius was responding to a question from Mr Nel, who pointed to a lack of clarity in the double-amputee runner's testimony about whether he turned off the alarm inside his home on the night of February 14, 2013.
Pistorius said he 'must have' turned off the alarm, which Mr Nel described as a vague response.
The prosecutor then asked Pistorius, who acknowledged making a mistake in his testimony, if he needed time before continuing with his testimony. 


'I don't need time,' the Olympic athlete said. 'I am tired. It's not going to change.'
Mr Nel responded: 'You're trying to cover up for lies and I'm not convinced.'
Judge Thokozile Masipa interjected, asking Pistorius if he was too tired to proceed.
'You can be at a disadvantage when you're in that box,' she said, adding that it wasn't fair to the court if he was not alert during the proceedings. 

Pistorius replied that he was able to go on.

Mr Nel also argued that Pistorius was prepared to lie about an incident as far back as five years ago when he claims someone shot at him from another car on a highway to build a backstory that he had a long-held fear of being attacked. 

Pistorius said he saw a 'muzzle flash' and heard 'a banging noise' as a black Mercedes drove past him in the incident, which he said was in 2008 or 2009.
Pistorius said he slowed down, turned off the highway and eventually went to a restaurant car park and called someone to come and pick him up. 

Mr Nel asked Pistorius who he called and Pistorius replied he couldn't remember.
'You cannot not remember,' Mr Nel said. It was 'such a traumatic incident,' the prosecutor said.
Mr Nel said Pistorius' failing to remember who he called was because 'it never happened.'
'It's the one night that someone almost shot you, am I right?' Mr Nel said. Pistorius said it was.
'If I could remember who I phoned I would gladly give you their name,' Pistorius said.
At one point in the proceedings, Judge Masipa had to warn Mr Nel to 'mind your language' as she reminded him not to call a witness a liar.


The prosecution says Pistorius killed the 29-year-old after an argument on February 14, 2013.

Culled from UK Daily Mail

90 comments:

  1. Alright #bright bravo#

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  2. HHmm!!

    Last to comment!! Lol

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  3. Ol boy! See query! This pple has a way of making u say d truth witout knowing! Fool! U tot it was a nightime intruder and u cudnt find out b4 firing? Ajambene! Tell dat to d birds......

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  4. Why are they wasting time with this Pistorius murderer of a guy.The thing is, the killing has been done,the motive is inconsequential for now.Let him face the music.period

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  5. that alien legged good for nothing God forsaken racially confused ogre murdered his girlfriend in cold blood, if he wins this case, then d law is the only ass left in the world

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  6. This is a country wia legal systems work perfectly..I v dz feelns dt oscar dey lie o...hw can u forget who u called d night u nearly died?..hmmm,anyways,God knws d truth and I blv dt d truth mst surely comes out

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  7. A white man shot and killed a white lady, that's their problem, I cant be bothered. If she was a black lady, I will be bothered.

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    1. Now anon 8:33 i believe say u get problem cos d girl wey die white mean say no be person born am lyk u...shoo act more human nd probably person no go shoot u too

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    2. That is very daft of you..... smh

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    3. Now u are talking like a racist. Either white or black, we are all human being.

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    4. Ann 8:33 I pray a black man/woman shoots and kill you, must u comment if you don't care then keep ur foolish thots to yourself

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    5. You nurrin buh a #racist

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  8. Hmmmm only God knows what happened that day. I just don't want to believe he did this purposely

    ~BONARIO~says so via NOKIA3310

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  9. This guy should just be jailed. He obviously murdered Reeva in his moments of anger. Anger is a bad thing. May God give us the grace to manage anger always.

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  10. It is impossible for someone to be shot 4 times without screaming, that dude is a big fat liar!

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  11. I don't think Oscar will go free on this!still pity him tho what anger can cause is inrepairable!

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  12. Oscar taking the stand was/is a very bad idea.
    If truly his killing Reeva was an accident, there's no how he can explain it...
    He's a spoilt troubled kid!


    * My R1.50c comment *

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    1. Everybody knew, is was a message from Francois Hougaard that started the fight. Obviously he hit her with the Cricket bat and she ran to the toilet (hence the bruises in her body), then he decided to shoot her. Gerrie Nel has just started. He has sent many people to the slammer & Oscar knows that's where he's going. He is not crying cos Reeva dies, he is just thinking of jail & campaigning for sympathy. He competed with able bodied people, he has to go to jail with able bodied people. He just needs to shut up & buy a jar of Vaseline.

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    2. Only God knws wot really happen.

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    3. Only God knws wot really happen.

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  13. Prosecutor Nel the bull terrier. He's steadily proving the case that this was pre-meditated murder. He roasted O.P with his questions today. The way he answered with his lies, errors and argumentative voice just goes to show that he's a sociopath.

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  14. Why do I sense lies in all his (Pistorius) stories? You couldn't remember who you called to come pick up after what happened, how is that? I don't feel for this dude no more...PISTOLrius, there's power in names O...

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  15. Why not you accept your fate Mr man?

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  16. Nawaa 4 dis guys case...if dey wanna sentence em,dey shd do dat once and 4 all...

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  17. Linda y do u keep dsturbn us wit dis Reeva issue.....since last yr feb nd they bringing up d issue.....Anyway i dnt believe dis dude.

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  18. Are you looking for a suger mummy or daddy please call dis line 08132333771 please be mature...

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  19. This guy killed d girlfrnd intentionally!simple

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  20. dis guy seem to have no excape root. questn upon questn.

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  21. I must be going mad. Why else would I alternate between : he shot her deliberately and he shot her in error all in one passing minute? Only God knows what really happened that day.

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  22. 5th day madam Linda

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  23. 5th day madam Linda

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  24. Oscar you can lie o. All what you said are jez nothing but TRUTHFUL LIES. I suppose you did it intentional probably you where high on moet pelu Bakadi!

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  25. The least that someone who kills another could do is say the truth, at least for the memory of the deceased and their own conscience. But some of them just kill and continue to live like nothing serious happened. Dead conscience. Can't understand it.

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  26. All this stress in trying to prove if he shot her deliberately or not is bla bla, the fact still remains that he killing someone


    Your comment will be visible after approval

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    1. Lol @he killing someone *killed*

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    2. Lol@ Alloy lets pretend its a typo error..

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  27. During this whole episode,I have asked a question that No sane acclaim learnered person in Nigeria has been able to answer........for few of us that may wish to knw........are we using same Law book in Nigeria here?are the ethics of law in Nigeria here different?until a lawyer answers this am left with my singular opinion that judicial system in Nigeria is a colossal liability.
    Look at the smart intelligent manner prosecutor is following up d accused,if it were to be here in my land of birth....the police will first make d whole tin a wale Adenuga show of tales frm d moon light,then the Lawyers will have a dinner party shamelessly at Pistorius apartment followed by unnecessary show of ridicule from d presiding judge.
    The supposed believed last hope of a common Man in Nigeria has been put on auction for the highest bidder mocking d institution that as a child I was meant to believe was a Noble profession.
    It is obvious that the right for fair hearing when compared to South African and Nigeria is like comparing Canoe soap and Clarins purity bar soap.
    I will hate to see Nigerian Lawyer anywhere near me refer to himself as a learned person..............it is my belief that Linda will definitely feed u guys with my story when I eventually encounters such a bizzare moment,until then,let us plz have a rethink individually and chose to think,act and play differently for after our sojourn here on earth............whatever we leave behind its just but MEMORIES which can either be positive or absurdity.I wish Pistorius will eventually be meant to face d weight of d blind Law as in d case of SA against Nigerian own that sees well and takes a lot Vitamin A 2 ensure perpetual quest for justice to d Rich and d mega Rich.God bless the Republic and Bless Gani fawehmi of blessed memory.

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  28. This trail is so confusing abeg!

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  29. Inject with a truth serum and watch him spill his guts.

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  30. Oscar Pistorius is a cold blooded killer and a terrible liar! He has dug himself so deep with the lies that I wonder how he's going to attempt dogging himself out. Must be painful for Reeva's family to sit there and listen to his obvious lies!! I hope justice is served because it's still Africa and sorry to say, but anything is possible.

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  31. How could Reeva be silent when he shouted at her and then at the intruders?? What a stupid liar. His defense team look worried!

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  32. This guy is guilty of premeditated murder I just pray the judge sees through his lies n acting n deliver the right sentence

    Facts

    1) y didn't he check to make sure his girlfriend was safe before confronting the intruder?

    2) y did she lock the toilet door wen it was just she n her boyfriend in the house n at that time too?

    3) y didn't she respond wen he was shouting at the person behind d door?

    4) d first shot he fired did not kill her it was d rest. He said she didn't scream wen he fired d first shot, who gets shot n not scream.

    5) this guy is gun happy


    Am sure they had an argument she fled to the bathroom to hide, he flared up took his gun to threaten her n then his temper got the better of him n he fired.

    No matter wat happens at the end of the trial nothing can bring the girl back, he won't have his old life back.

    Two families changed forever

    #missfabulousdee

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  33. This dude is nw a big celebrity....
    .
    .
    .
    ***CURRENTLY IN JUPITER***

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  34. Diz guy killed d gal nd itz written al over..... Em no sabi lie @al. Plz gv em life in prison abeg.....pple wey no get leg or coma fr bodi get wicked mind.

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  35. Hot! Hot!! Hot!! Dats what he received today.

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  36. Na wah o,I don't know wat to believe o

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  37. I knew from begining that this guy shot with the intent to kill and knowing fully well who he was shooting! He felt burnt that he killed her afterwards, which explains al the emotions he's been showing! Oscar u are going to jail!

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  38. I used to think these white people had sense,but some of them are very big OLODO! Which kind lie be this? He didn't even calculate the lie well. Haba! Too cheap Oscar. You should come for tutorials if you eventually escape this life time sentence.Intruder my foot!

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  39. Even if it was an intruder, he needed to be sure his family ws safe b4 takin any actions. No1 knws if he's sayin d truth or not, but if he is, den he is vry stupid nd dumb

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  40. Valentine's day! He got suspicious of her movements on that day, angrily asked her, and got infuriated with her reply.] He may not have heard her scream since the shots may have been fired in quick succession senselessly.] Best thing is not to have a firearm or even a knife around you when you are angry because you may be tempted to use it and before you can think rationally, the deed would have been done.] Lastly, most hit men or armed robbers do not want to die or go to prison, so that even if they escape from prison , instead of enjoying for one day and committing suicide, they hide until they are caught days later.

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  41. The prosecution lawyer gave him hell. He lied and lied and lied, until he got tired of lying. And he started crying! Crying shame!!!

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  42. I dnt pity u oscar u deserved t end up in jail...wicked man. Keep resting reeva!!!

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  43. Hmmm the truth is thr ve bn pple who killed der loved ones by mistake thinking it ws an intruder! But ds guy's story is nt convincing and its cheap!he shd jst say d truth and giv up!and plea manslaughter....well na only God knw weda na true

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  44. Linda thanks for the update.

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  45. Justice shuld prevail....

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  46. No room for escape...good.

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  47. Can any lawyer in the house pls explain why lie detectors aren't used in cases as this?

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  48. Only God knw how it all happened,.... Bt I don't b'live the guy one bit!

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  49. Prosecutor still needs to prove beyond reasonable doubt. I think there is still reasonable doubt so Oscar can go free for now. He needs to push further.

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  50. This guy is a miserable liar!

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  51. Why do I find his story hard to believe?....something's not right....just saying...

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  52. @Bonario, what do you know? The smelly pussy you have been licking has destroyed your brain.

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  53. Oscar is confusing himself. He should just accept the fact that he intentionally shot Reeva due to the arguement they had and do us all a favor by kindly serving his jail terms. But Nel though!

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  54. This was the day this hopeless man destroyed himself in court with lies. And he kept on lying.

    It was the day the defence case fell flat on its face. He was thoroughly 'brutalized' by the prosecution.

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  55. This was the day this hopeless man destroyed himself in court with lies. And he kept on lying.

    It was the day the defence case fell flat on its face. He was thoroughly 'brutalized' by the prosecution.

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  56. Tis guy murdered tis babe out of provokation......(Period)........it's either life imprisonment or death sentence......(Simple).......

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  57. @Anon 9:38 AM. You are the foolish one. Do white folks give a damn about you. FOOL!!!

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  58. Pistorios is a bloody liar! Hw can he not remember the person he called on d day he was almost killed. Cos I can still remember clearly those I was with and those that saved us d day my car brake failed on a narrow bend back then.


    Mrs. A.

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  59. Pistorious is a liar,I believe they had an arguement,mayb she ws seeing sme1 else.She ran into d bathroom to cry he ran after her,she locked d door.He threatend her to open d door or he fires,she refused he fired.even in lagos in d 90's when thieves cme to 1s neighbourhood u shoot up to warn them u 've a gun they flee.U dn't shoot down or u might kill 'ur gateman or hs wife.Imagine diis guy lyin to hs gf's parents,jst like Mr Arowolo that ws lying that hs wife stabbed herslf 12 times if nt 4 d pathologist he might 've gt away wit d lie.God's judgement is waiting for Oscar

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  60. See prolonged and perpetuated waste of time and resources...if na Naija we go jail am first before asking questions....AREA!!!

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  61. That guy's lying. How would you be with your gf and you hear noise you can't check for her first

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  62. This man should Just agree he shot her by mistake. Which ever way he can't go free.

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  63. Oh ma Goodness,dis is pure wickedness Oscar,you killed her obviously out of Anger nd naw d tot of u dyng is scaring yhu...........If truly u killed dat lady,U shall Nat go Scot free by God's grace.
    Cuz u've brute pian into soooooo many hearts..including I.
    derbydanaz

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  64. Just too bad,+ it hurts alot

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  65. When I saw the live reports I was proud: Nel was asking the questions the nation has been asking.
    NOTE TO EVERYONE ...THINK BEFORE YOU ACT: im sure when Oscar used to run track he never ever imagined he'd be on a stand facing a murder charge "Thinkkkkkk"

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  66. hahaha dis guy jst killed his babe for fear of loosing her to another man.

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  67. hahaha dis guy jst killed his babe for fear of loosing her to another man.

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