They finished by opting to “set aside the decision” and referring Pistorius’ case “back to the (broader Correctional Supervision and Parole Board) for reconsideration”, the Correctional Services department said in a news release.
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The independent review board cancelled Pistorious’ early release, and said in a statement that he should undergo “psychotherapy” as part of any parole conditions.
The intervention was widely criticised by legal experts, but on Monday the judges sitting on the parole review board agreed with Masutha’s argument that the decision to release the athlete was made prematurely.
OSCAR Pistorious should remain in jail and not be put under house arrest, a review board has decided.
He said he believed she was an intruder, the state said he murdered her deliberately after an argument but a judge ruled prosecutors had failed to convince her and found him guilty of manslaughter instead.
The 28-year-old was sentenced in 2014 to five years in prison for culpable homicide in Steenkamp’s murder, which took place on Valentine’s Day, 2013.
He was given an additional three-year sentence, suspended for five years, for firing a gun in a restaurant.
Pistorius, who was the first amputee sprinter to race against able-bodied athletes at the 2012 London Olympics, was expecting to be allowed to leave prison to live under house arrest at his uncle’s mansion in Pretoria.
The decision comes after South Africa’s justice minister expressed concerns over an August release, saying procedure had not been followed.
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Masutha said the parole board had made a mistake when they approved Pistorius for early release. If a person has good behaviour and has served one sixth of their sentence, then there’s no reason not to grant them parole, it’s a tick-the-box exercise. “Why?” Reeva’s mother June Steenkamp said in the interview.
