Pistorius hospitalised after fall in prison

Convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius was briefly hospitalised on Saturday for minor injuries before returning to his prison cell this Sunday. Sources indicated he was treated for injuries sustained in a fall, while a South African newspaper called it a "wrist injury".

Oscar Pistorius during his trial. Phill Magakoe/Reuters

According to the South African weekly City Press, citing another inmate at the prison, Pistorius had to go to hospital after intentionally slitting his wrists.

But Carl Pistorius, the athlete's brother, was quoted by the BBC as saying suggestions of a suicide attempt were "completely untrue and sensational".

"He had to be detained Saturday afternoon at the hospital after falling off his bed," prison services spokesman Singabakho Nxumalo told AFP. "He is back in our care now."

He added that the double-amputee Paralympian was again in the medical wing of the Kgosi Mampuru II prison in Pretoria where he has been serving out his six-year sentence due to his handicap.

Pistorius was convicted of shooting to death Reeva Steenkamp, a model and law graduate, in the early hours of Valentine's Day in 2013, saying he mistook her for a burglar when he fired four times through the door of his bedroom toilet.

The former athlete, who pleaded not guilty at his trial in 2014, has always denied killing Steenkamp in a rage, saying he was trying to protect her.

After first being found guilty of culpable homicide, an appeals court upgraded his conviction to murder in December last year.

Pistorius, 29, previously a role model for disabled people worldwide, is eligible for conditional release in 2019 after serving half his prison term.