A heartbreaking image of Reeva Steenkamp's body after she was murdered by Oscar Pistorius has been released because her father wants the world to see it.
Mr Barry Steenkamp said he wanted the world to see the horrendous injuries she suffered at the hands of Pistorius, in the hope of preventing similar murders in future.
The former model and TV presenter was shot by the disgraced sprinter at his home in Pretoria, South Africa, in the early hours of Valentine's Day 2013.
Pistorius, 29, claimed he thought she was intruder and the shooting was a tragic mistake.
But he was convicted of manslaughter and the verdict was later upgraded to murder. See the graphic pic below.
The grieving father also told the court in Pretoria that "the time will come" when he wants to talk to Pistorius in private – and that the runner "has to pay for what he did".
His wife June has forgiven her daughter's killer but Mr Steenkamp stressed that it does not mean Pistorius should be freed from prison.
Barry Steenkamp
The 73-year-old said:
“I don’t want to say that he must go to the maximum or whatever it is, but he has to pay for it.”
“June has forgiven," he continued. "She feels it right in her heart to forgive Oscar. But then you must understand by forgiving like that, it still does not exonerate you from the crime that you committed."
The 73-year-old also told how he hears his wife crying every night as she talks to Reeva. Trembling while speaking, he told the court:
"She’s most probably a bit stronger but she grieves. I hear her at night, I hear her cry, I hear her talking to Reeva, and of course she feels just as much as I do."
"Every day of my life – morning, noon, night – I think of her all the time."
It comes after Pistorius dramatically removed his prosthetic legs and demonstrated the scale of his disability to the courtroom in a plea for mercy yesterday.
The former Olympic runner was asked by his defence counsel Barry Roux to remove his fake limbs in a bid to prove he deserves leniency.
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