05-06-2014, 11:12 AM
THE SILENT MAID AND THE CHATTY NEIGHBORS -- NO FEMALE SCREAMS HEARD
Someone else was inside Oscar Pistorius' home in Pretoria, South Africa, the night the athlete shot his girlfriend to death -- his longtime housekeeper, Frank Chiziweni.
Chiziweni was sleeping in his room off from Pistorius’ kitchen on Valentine’s Day 2013. His presence was revealed in court Monday, when a neighbor testified that Chiziweni greeted her at the home.
The defense and prosecution have declined to call Chiziweni, a Malawian, to the stand. They believe he wouldn’t have said anything. Following the shooting, he told police that he “heard nothing” that night, sleeping through what witnesses who lived 200 yards away described as “bloodcurdling” screams.
None of the witnesses called today heard a female scream, a stark contrast to the state’s witnesses, who testified about hearing screams and a woman’s voice.
Pistorius’ neighbors demonstrated the screams that they heard in court today. Witnesses Rita Motshuane and Eontle Hillary Nhlengethwa mimicked the high-pitched, almost howling cries they heard after Pistorius shot his girlfriend to death.
Nhlengethwa’s husband, Mike Nhlengethwa, testified that Pistorius introduced Steenkamp to him as his fiancee, a meeting that occurred days before the shooting. When Nhlengethwa went to shake Steenkamp’s hand, she instead opened her arms and hugged him.
Nhlengethwa said Pistorius, with whom he shared a passion for cars, told him he wanted to move from Pretoria to Johannesburg, South Africa, to be with Steenkamp, a model and reality TV star. Nhlengethwa was sad about the prospect of his neighbor moving away, but it was worth it for a woman like Steenkamp, he said.
Nhlengethwa, who was Pistorius' next-door neighbor, testified that his wife woke him up after hearing a bang and that he did not hear gunshots. He said he then heard a man crying in a high-pitched voice that indicated he urgently needed help. Nhlengethwa could not make out most of what the man was saying, though he heard the words: "No, please, please, no."
The neighbor's bedroom window was around 80 feet from the balcony doors of Pistorius' bedroom, closer than neighbors called by prosecutors and who said they heard a woman screaming on the night of the shooting.
The defense was trying to present Nhlengethwa as a more reliable witness on the events of the night because of how much closer he lived to Pistorius' villa. A neighbor who testified to hearing a woman's "blood-curdling" screams on the night lived around 560 feet from Pistorius' house.
Nhlengethwa testified that he called estate security to ask them to come to their road.
The trial was adjourned to Thursday, as elections are scheduled for Wednesday in South Africa.
Rioux told the court that he's on track to finish the defense case by Tuesday, May 13th.
Refs:
http://abcnews.go.com/International/pist...d=23602899
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/oscar-pistor...of-events/
Someone else was inside Oscar Pistorius' home in Pretoria, South Africa, the night the athlete shot his girlfriend to death -- his longtime housekeeper, Frank Chiziweni.
Chiziweni was sleeping in his room off from Pistorius’ kitchen on Valentine’s Day 2013. His presence was revealed in court Monday, when a neighbor testified that Chiziweni greeted her at the home.
The defense and prosecution have declined to call Chiziweni, a Malawian, to the stand. They believe he wouldn’t have said anything. Following the shooting, he told police that he “heard nothing” that night, sleeping through what witnesses who lived 200 yards away described as “bloodcurdling” screams.
None of the witnesses called today heard a female scream, a stark contrast to the state’s witnesses, who testified about hearing screams and a woman’s voice.
Pistorius’ neighbors demonstrated the screams that they heard in court today. Witnesses Rita Motshuane and Eontle Hillary Nhlengethwa mimicked the high-pitched, almost howling cries they heard after Pistorius shot his girlfriend to death.
Nhlengethwa’s husband, Mike Nhlengethwa, testified that Pistorius introduced Steenkamp to him as his fiancee, a meeting that occurred days before the shooting. When Nhlengethwa went to shake Steenkamp’s hand, she instead opened her arms and hugged him.
Nhlengethwa said Pistorius, with whom he shared a passion for cars, told him he wanted to move from Pretoria to Johannesburg, South Africa, to be with Steenkamp, a model and reality TV star. Nhlengethwa was sad about the prospect of his neighbor moving away, but it was worth it for a woman like Steenkamp, he said.
Nhlengethwa, who was Pistorius' next-door neighbor, testified that his wife woke him up after hearing a bang and that he did not hear gunshots. He said he then heard a man crying in a high-pitched voice that indicated he urgently needed help. Nhlengethwa could not make out most of what the man was saying, though he heard the words: "No, please, please, no."
The neighbor's bedroom window was around 80 feet from the balcony doors of Pistorius' bedroom, closer than neighbors called by prosecutors and who said they heard a woman screaming on the night of the shooting.
The defense was trying to present Nhlengethwa as a more reliable witness on the events of the night because of how much closer he lived to Pistorius' villa. A neighbor who testified to hearing a woman's "blood-curdling" screams on the night lived around 560 feet from Pistorius' house.
Nhlengethwa testified that he called estate security to ask them to come to their road.
The trial was adjourned to Thursday, as elections are scheduled for Wednesday in South Africa.
Rioux told the court that he's on track to finish the defense case by Tuesday, May 13th.
Refs:
http://abcnews.go.com/International/pist...d=23602899
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/oscar-pistor...of-events/