Some 1,709 texts and WhatsApp messages were retrieved from the phones of Oscar Pistorius and the late Reeva Steenkamp, in which Steenkamp told her alleged killer that she was "scared of [him] sometimes."
The messages offer a disconcerting look at the nature of Pistorius and Steenkamp's often volatile relationship, with the prosecution engaging Francois Moller from South Africa's Directorate of Priority Crime to analyze calls, texts, and other messages obtained from Pistorius and Steenkamp's phones. In total, Moller accessed previously deleted files from an iPad, a MacBook, two iPhones, and two Blackberries (which had not been in use at the time).
Moller's testimony was compounded by that of Pistorius' neighbor Annette Stipp, who claimed to hear Steenkamp screaming. The prosecution hopes to prove that the screams came before Pistorius' four gunshots, thus rendering it an intentional killing, as opposed to the tragic accident that the defense is claiming. "I couldn't make out what she was screaming, it was just screams, very terrified screaming," Stipp said.
Steenkamp's messages to Pistorius were similarly frightened, though the defense maintains that the messages presented by the prosecution only account for around 10 percent of total correspondence - a figure supported by Moller. Despite the relatively small number, however, the texts portray an unhappy domestic partnership that could be damning in the trial. "You do everything to throw tantrums in front of people. I have been upset by you for 2 days now," Steenkamp's message read. "I am the girl who let go with u even when I was scared out of my mind to. I'm the girl who fell in love with u and wanted to tell u this weekend. But I'm also the girl that gets sidestepped when you are in a s**t mood."
"From the outside I think it looks like we are a struggle and maybe that's what we are," the message continued. "I just want to love and be loved. Be happy and make someone SO happy. Maybe we can't do that for each other. Cos right now I know u aren't happy and I am certainly very unhappy and sad."
The messages went on to highlight Pistorius' insecurity, irascibility and resulting problems in their relationship, with Steenkamp labeling it a 'double standard relationship.'
The prosecution has today rested their case, without calling Pistorius himself to the stand. The trial, intended to finish on March 20, is now expected to continue through to May.
