Oscar Pistorius Case: Teammate Rebuts Anger-Management Speculation
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KARIM JAAFAR/AFP/Getty Images(PRETORIA, South Africa) — A “shocked” teammate of Oscar Pistorius rebutted rumors and speculation in South Africa that Pistorius had an anger-management problem around the time he allegedly killed his girlfriend.
Ofentse Mogawane, a sprinter for the South African Olympic team who ran the 400-meter relay with Pistorius in the London Summer Games last year, said Pistorius had always been genial to him and other people.
Mogawane said he will be in court Tuesday to support his friend.
“Basically, he was a very good guy to us, to the teammates and to most athletes,” Mogawane said. “He was a really humble person and I wouldn’t say a bad word about him. We never had any kind of clash, never any kind of fight or disagreement or arguing.”
“The way Oscar’s case was, it shocked me, shocked most of the people who know him. Tomorrow in court I am going to be there to support him. To hear what happened the night of the incident,” he said.
“Sometimes when people are angry they cannot control their anger. Something must have happened.”
Mogawane, 30, spoke in support of Pistorius after a report in South Africa’s City Press newspaper that claimed police were looking into the possibility that a bloody cricket bat found in his bedroom was used before the shooting.
Pistorius will appear in court Tuesday morning in Pretoria, South Africa, for a bail hearing. His attorneys are expected to argue against the charge of “premeditated murder.”
His family has said the shooting was an accident.
“The way the news has been running around in South Africa, that he is a short-tempered person, a person who has problems with anger management, they just want something to say,” Mogawane said. “They don’t know Oscar at all. They just want to get interviewed and take pictures. But truly speaking, it’s just a lot of speculation.”
Mogawane said he had seen Pistorius become angry before, but only in the same way as any other athlete or person.
Pistorius, 26, was arrested Thursday and charged with killing Steenkamp, 29, at his home in the South African capitol of Pretoria.
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