Oscar Pistorius will not be released from prison on Friday as previously presumed, South Africa’s Department of Justice said.
Pistorius’ case has been put on hold until it can be reviewed again by a parole board, reports CBS News.
Mthunzi Mhaga, spokesman for the Justice Department, said a review of Pistorius’ case must be reviewed because the man accused of killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013 was approved to be moved to house arrest too early.
“It is apparent… that the decision to release him on 21 August 2015 was made prematurely on 5 June 2015 when the offender was not eligible to be considered at all,” Mhaga said in a statement.
“The consequence of this decision is that the earlier decision of the Parole Board to place the offender under correctional supervision is suspended until the Parole Review Board has decided on the matter,” Mhaga said.
South Africa's Dept. of Justice says it's putting Oscar Pistorius' release from prison on hold http://t.co/kNLteo3JBl pic.twitter.com/XsLP6Mcijx
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 19, 2015
Mhaga said Pistorius, the double-amputee Olympic runner, should have served 10 months of his sentence before being considered for release. In June, he was approved for release just eight months into his sentence.
Pistorius was sentenced to five years after being convicted of manslaughter in the death of Steenkamp.
Oscar Pistorius's early release put on hold http://t.co/wIDCajPDRm pic.twitter.com/bloqyZij5l
— The Sun Newsdesk (@SunNewsdesk) August 19, 2015
The case is currently with the South African Supreme Court, where a panel of judges will review Pistorius’ trial and determine if Judge Thokozile Masipa made an error in acquitting him of murder in September of last year. If the panel finds Pistorius guilty on appeal, he faces a minimum sentence of 15 years in jail.
Steenkamp’s family said in June when Oscar Pistorius’ impending release was announced that “incarceration of 10 months for taking a life is simply not enough.”
