When Love Turned Deadly: Reeva Steenkamp's Tragic Valentine’s Day

[00:00:00] The case featured in this episode has been researched using police records, court documents, witness statements, and the news. Listener discretion is advised. All parties mentioned are innocent until proven guilty, and all opinions are my own.

[00:00:34] Hey everyone, my name is Nikki Young and this is Serial Napper, the true crime podcast for naps. I'm back with another true crime story to lull you to sleep or perhaps to give you nightmares. It was February 14, 2013, a day meant to be filled with love, romance, and heart-shaped cards. But for one couple, this Valentine's Day would forever be remembered for tragedy and mystery.

[00:01:01] It was the moment when Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee and a beloved South African Olympian runner, fired four shots through a locked bathroom door, killing his girlfriend, 29-year-old Riva Steenkamp.

[00:01:16] A model, law graduate, and rising star, Riva's promising life was cut short in a violent moment that would leave the world in shock. Oscar claimed that he believed an intruder had broken into his home, a fear not entirely unfounded as he had been the victim of previous break-ins and had even received death threats. He said he slept with his 9mm pistol under his bed, ready to protect himself at any moment.

[00:01:45] After firing the shots, Oscar said he grabbed a cricket bat to break down the door. It was only then in the aftermath that he realized who he had shot. Riva, the woman he had been in a relationship with for the last three months. However, the police believed otherwise, that this wasn't a case of self-defense, rather a tragic result of a domestic dispute.

[00:02:11] Neighbors reported hearing loud arguments coming from Oscar's house shortly before the fatal shots rang out. The theory? Oscar and Riva had argued, and in a moment of rage or confusion, he had shot her through the door. At the end of the day, the only one who really knows the truth is Oscar.

[00:02:32] So, dim the lights, put your phone down, and listen as I dive deeper into the trial, the twists and turns of the case, and the haunting question that still lingers over this tragic event. Was this an accident? Or did Oscar Pistorius know that he was killing Riva Steenkamp that night? So, let's jump right in.

[00:02:55] Born in Cape Town, Riva Steenkamp moved to Johannesburg years before her death to pursue her dream of becoming a model. And make no mistake, she wasn't just the girlfriend of a famous Olympian. She was famous in her own right. A striking platinum-haired beauty, Riva was preparing to make her reality television debut when her life was tragically cut short.

[00:03:20] A law school graduate with a vibrant personality, she had already landed a slew of modeling gigs, and her fame was growing by the day. Riva became a presenter for fashion TV in South Africa, appeared as an FHM cover girl, and was even the face of cosmetics giant Avon. FHM would describe her as, quote, beautiful, intelligent, and warm-hearted, with a wicked sense of humor.

[00:03:49] The agency that represented her, Capacity Relations, called her the kindest, sweetest human being, an angel on earth. She was full of life and love for everyone. She was always helping her friends because she had a nurturing nature. She was extremely intelligent.

[00:04:11] And in the book, I think it's in the book where I tell you that when she was 12, she became my mother and I became my daughter. Because she had far more brains than I had and far more. But she was so loving and caring. And she actually was fun to be with as well. She attracted a lot of people because of her personality. She had a very vivacious, she was always laughing, and she took things in her stride.

[00:04:41] She didn't have an easy time. Things went wrong for her, like it goes wrong for everyone. But she would rise above and come strong out of it, stronger out of it. Her popularity was on the rise. Oscar Pistorius and Riva Steenkamp were first seen together at a South African awards ceremony. At the time, Riva insisted that they were just friends.

[00:05:05] But by November of 2012, they had become an item and quickly became the darling couple of South African society. The media adored them. They were the golden couple, and their relationship was splashed across the headlines. In the months leading up to her death, Riva shared a picture collage on social media, including one that featured Oscar. She wrote in the caption, Some of my favorite people.

[00:05:33] And soon after posted a message that appeared to be a sweet reflection of their love. She wrote, The only guy you need in your life is the one who proves that he needs you in his. It seemed like they had it all. Oscar's relatives were also swept up in the joy of the relationship. His uncle, Arnold Pistorius, would later speak about how happy Riva had made Oscar. He said,

[00:05:59] All of us saw at first hand how close she had become to Oscar during that time and how happy they were. The couple had big dreams, Arnold added. They had plans together, and Oscar was happier in his private life than he had been for a very long time. Oscar had already made history in 2012 as the first Paralymbian to complete in the Able-Bodied Olympics.

[00:06:25] Born without fibulae, the bones in the lower leg that supports the ankle and the calf, his legs were amputated below the knee when he was just 11 months old. He ran on specialized carbon fiber blades, and his story of determination and perseverance inspired millions all around the world. His achievements included winning the 200-meter event at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, competing in multiple Paralympic Games,

[00:06:54] and the 2012 Summer Olympics. Both of them being so goal-oriented and bound for success, he and Riva seemed like a lovely match. Riva, who constantly referred to Oscar as My Boo on social media, shared tons of pictures of their vacations together. They looked happy. But, as with all relationships, it wasn't without its ups and its downs. Court documents would later reveal text messages between the couple,

[00:07:23] showing a relationship that had its share of rocky moments. While they seemed happy, cracks had begun to show. There were issues. In private, their love was complicated by jealousy, tension, and emotional turmoil. In some of the text messages, Riva accused Oscar of being overly jealous and overbearing, her words hinting at deeper struggles beneath the surface. Riva confided in Oscar through WhatsApp messages telling him,

[00:07:54] You have picked on me excessively. I do everything to make you happy, and you do everything to throw tantrums. But things went deeper. Less than three weeks before she was killed, Riva sent a message that was especially alarming considering what would happen to her. She wrote, I'm scared of you sometimes, and how you snap at me, and of how you will react to me. The messages painted a troubling picture,

[00:08:23] a woman who felt fear and unease in her own relationship. And this wasn't an isolated moment. In another exchange, Riva told Oscar, We are living in a double standard relationship. Every five seconds, I hear about how you dated another chick. You really have dated a lot of people, yet you get upset if I mention one funny story with a long-term boyfriend. In the months leading up to her death,

[00:08:51] these messages would paint a portrait of a relationship marked by tension and emotional control, a stark contrast to the outward appearances of happiness. But did Riva truly feel trapped in the relationship? Her mother, June Steenkamp, would later reveal that Riva had confided in her about the state of her relationship with Oscar. According to June, Riva had told her that she hadn't yet slept with Oscar. She said, quote, She had shared a bed with him,

[00:09:21] but she was scared to take the relationship to that level. June continued by saying, She wouldn't want to sleep with Oscar if she wasn't sure. I believe their relationship was coming to an end. In her heart of hearts, she didn't think it was making either of them happy. Despite the issues between them, it's believed that Riva was still very much looking forward to Valentine's Day. She was very active on social media, and she asked her Twitter followers,

[00:09:50] What do you have up your sleeve for your love tomorrow? Get excited. Riva wouldn't have the chance to celebrate the Day of Love because before the sun would rise again, Riva would be dead. She spent the evening at Oscar's beautiful large home in the gated community of Silverwood's country estate, located about 30 miles north of Johannesburg. What happened in her final hours is difficult to piece together

[00:10:18] because there's really only one person still around who can tell the story. However, here's what we do know. In the early morning hours of February 14th, 2013, around 3.20 a.m., Oscar called his neighbor, then the ambulance service, then finally called the security team working at his estate, telling them that there had been an emergency. Reva had been shot.

[00:10:45] Next, he picked her limp body up off the bathroom floor where she had been hit with three bullets and carried her downstairs near the front door. A neighbor arrived at the home within moments to find Oscar attempting to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on Reva. At this point, she was gurgling and barely breathing. They put a tourniquet on her arm to try to stop some of the bleeding that was coming from one of the gunshot wounds.

[00:11:14] Soon, another neighbor arrived named Johan Slip, who just so happened to be a doctor, and he tried to open her airway by performing a jaw-life maneuver. Unfortunately, by this time, Reva was no longer breathing, and the doctor couldn't find a pulse. She was gone. When police and paramedics arrived on the scene, they found Reva's body just inside the front door laying on the floor.

[00:11:40] Oscar was standing there over her, shirtless, covered in blood. They asked him to move to the kitchen so that the medics could work while investigators asked him some questions about what had happened. In turn, he asked them if he could wash his bloody hands because the smell was making him feel ill. It quickly became apparent to police that the crime scene was actually in the large upstairs en suite bathroom.

[00:12:07] They found the door to the bathroom completely riddled with bullet holes and then smashed by something hard and heavy. On the bathroom floor, they found a bloodied cricket bat, which Oscar had used to break down the bathroom door when he found it had been locked from the inside. And they found the weapon, a 9mm Parabellum pistol, which had been used to shoot Reva. Three of the four bullets shot had hit Reva's body. According to Oscar,

[00:12:37] this whole thing was a terrible mistake. He and Reva had gone to bed around 10pm the evening prior. The air conditioning in the home wasn't working, so Oscar had placed two fans in the doorway to the balcony, hoping to bring in some relief, some cool air into the room. He said he usually sleeps on the right side of the bed, but because of an old shoulder injury, that night he was on the left. On his side of the bed,

[00:13:04] Oscar had left his iPad and prosthetic legs. On Reva's side, her bag and sandals were scattered across the floor. Oscar said he woke up in the early hours of the morning because the room was really hot and humid. It was around 3am. Reva, who was also awake, asked him, You can't sleep, Bubba? He said he rose from the bed, his prosthetics left behind, and he moved the fans from the balcony doorway to inside the room to cool it down.

[00:13:33] He pulled the curtains tightly shut to block out the slim strip of light that was creeping through. That's when he said he heard the sound of a window opening in the bathroom. He said he thought that the sound could be from an intruder who was now inside of his home. Maybe someone had used a ladder to gain access to the window in the bathroom. Oscar Pistorius, still on his stumps, moved back towards his bed to retrieve his gun, a 9mm pistol,

[00:14:01] which he always kept underneath his bed. He said he whispered to Reva to call the police. Then he moved down the hallway with his back against the wall to give him a little bit better stability. Then he says he called for the person to get out of his house, and he once again yelled for Reva to call the police. According to Oscar, he said that without his prosthetic legs, he felt particularly vulnerable in this situation up against a potential perpetrator.

[00:14:30] He thought he heard the sound of the bathroom door opening, and that's when he fired four shots in quick succession at the door. Next, he said he retreated back down the hallway towards his bedroom while still keeping his gun aimed at the bathroom just in case the perpetrator was still standing. The bedroom was dark as he hopped onto the bed. Oscar said he felt around for Reva, who he expected to be lying in bed still, but she wasn't there.

[00:14:58] He assumed that she must be hiding at this point. Maybe she was under the bed or behind the curtains. However, as he looked around the room, he was able to see that she just wasn't there. She wasn't under the bed. She was not hiding behind the curtain. And that's when it hit him. Maybe she was in the bathroom. It's time for a quick break and a word from tonight's sponsors. Hang on, I'll be back before you know it.

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[00:16:50] you can get 15% off on your entire first order at happymammoth.com. Just use the code CERIALNAPPER at checkout. That's happymammoth.com and use the code CERIALNAPPER for 15% off today. Now back to our story. He returned to the bathroom, but when he tried to open the door, he found that it was locked. So he went back to the bedroom again

[00:17:19] to put on his prosthetic legs. He opened the curtains and he began screaming for help because at this point, he realized that it was her in the bathroom. Oscar said he knew he had to get that bathroom door open, so he tried slamming his body against the door, but it just wasn't opening. That's when he grabbed his cricket bat and he began smashing the door in so that he could reach inside and unlock it. This worked and when he was able to open the door,

[00:17:47] he found Reva slumped over the toilet. After running over to her and crying, he ran back to his bed to grab his phone and then back to Reva in the bathroom to call for help. That's when he carried her downstairs waiting for the ambulance. This story that Oscar was telling, it just didn't sit right with investigators. It was just he and Reva in the house that night. There wasn't any sign of any forced entry, nothing that showed up on any of the security cameras,

[00:18:16] really no way for anyone to get through that open bathroom window, especially without a ladder, and there was no ladder. So the following day, they decided to charge Oscar with the murder of Reva Steenkamp. You see, the police were already very familiar with Oscar Pistorius, and not just because of his incredible Olympic performance. He was known to them because this was not the first time that they were called to his home over a violent incident involving a woman. In 2009,

[00:18:46] he was charged with assault after a woman reported to police that he had physically assaulted her during a house party. At that time, Oscar was released with a warning. However, this situation was much different. Reva was dead. Her body riddled with bullets. It would take a full year for Oscar to go to trial to face these charges in 2014. It was a case that captivated the world. A famous athlete,

[00:19:15] a deadly knight, and a trial that would unfold under the unrelenting gaze of the media. Oscar Pistorius, the Blade Runner, a name that once symbolized triumph over adversity, now found himself standing in the dock, facing charges of murder. It was March 3rd, 2014, when Oscar's seven-month murder trial began. The world watched as the Paralympic champion's fate was decided, played out live on television.

[00:19:44] His defense was simple but shocking. He believed his girlfriend, Riva Steenkamp, was an intruder, so he shot his gun to protect himself. Only after breaking down the door did he realize his tragic mistake. But by then, the damage was done. Riva was dead. Prosecutors, however, painted a very different picture. They began to tear his story apart. If Oscar truly thought that there was a dangerous intruder in his house, they asked,

[00:20:14] why didn't he first check on Riva, who at that moment was in the very same home? Oscar claimed he feared for his life, but he had walked past Riva's side of the bed, her personal belongings scattered across the floor, before heading straight for the bathroom. If he was so concerned about an intruder, why didn't he check on the woman he loved, who at the very moment was just a few steps away? Instead, they insisted his story about this intruder

[00:20:43] was completely made up. The prosecution claimed that an argument had erupted between the couple earlier on in the evening. After a confrontation, Riva fled to the bathroom, locking herself inside in fear. And in fact, there were neighbors who testified that around 3 a.m. that morning, they heard shouting and screaming coming from Oscar's villa, and then the loud bangs. The prosecution alleged that this proved the couple had been fighting before the shooting.

[00:21:13] Riva had been found in a position that looked like she was crouching beside the toilet behind the locked door. She had been shot through her shorts, meaning it wasn't likely that she was using the toilet at the time. More so, it appeared as if she were hiding. Hiding from who? Hiding from Oscar? According to the prosecution, what followed was not a tragic accident, but four gunshots fired through the bathroom door. Four hollow-point bullets

[00:21:42] from Oscar's 9mm pistol that were designed to inflict maximum damage to the human body. The prosecution suggested that Oscar shot to kill, not out of fear for an intruder, but in anger and desperation. They pointed to those text messages sent between Riva and Oscar that painted their relationship as toxic and full of jealousy and cruelty. Ballistic experts testified in court that hollow-point bullets, like the ones Oscar used,

[00:22:12] are made to expand upon impact, cutting through organs and causing massive internal damage. Why would anyone keep a loaded gun with these specific bullets underneath their bed? I don't know, but Riva didn't stand a chance that night. Oscar's defense lawyer refuted these claims about an argument between the couple, instead saying that the screaming the neighbors heard was actually Oscar's screaming after learning that he had mistakenly shot and killed Riva.

[00:22:42] And there were witnesses called to the stand who testified that they had arrived at the home shortly after the shooting, and they saw Oscar screaming and crying over Riva's body. He was in shambles over what had happened, completely distraught. There was one detail that would haunt the entire case, the question of whether Oscar Pistorius was wearing his prosthetic legs at the time of the shooting, and what that might mean. Prosecutors wasted no time making their case.

[00:23:11] They argued that Oscar, in his panic, would not have had the time to put on his prosthetic legs before firing those fatal shots. They suggested that Oscar had in fact donned his prosthetics before the shooting, an act that showed, according to them, premeditation. If he had put on his prosthetics, the prosecution claimed, it meant that he wasn't acting on instinct. It meant that he had time to think, to prepare, something far more deliberate

[00:23:40] than the defense's portrayal of a man reacting suddenly to what he thought was a dangerous intruder. But Oscar's defense team argued that the angle of the bullet holes in the bathroom door, a piece of evidence that had been brought into the courtroom, was key. The angle suggested that Oscar had fired the shots while he was standing on his stumps, without his prosthetic legs. And it was a critical point. If Oscar was truly standing on his stumps, it meant that the shooting could have occurred

[00:24:09] in a split second of panic, not after a deliberate moment of thought. It reinforced his claim that he had acted out of fear, not premeditation. But the battle over the prosthetics, it didn't end there. To further support their argument, Oscar's lawyer had him walk around the courtroom without his prosthetics. They wanted to show the jury how unstable he was without his legs. How vulnerable he was. The idea was to demonstrate

[00:24:38] the physical disadvantage that he faced without his prosthetics. To paint a picture of a man who, in his vulnerability, might have overreacted to what he thought was an imminent threat in his home. Oscar testified that he had opened fire through the bathroom door, believing he was protecting Reva. In his eyes, it was an act of defense, an instinctual response to what he thought was an intruder in their home. But his story didn't end there. He told the court

[00:25:08] about a terrifying experience from his past, a near-death incident in 2009. He spoke of a boat crash that had left him with a deep-rooted fear of losing his life. This fear, he said, had been ingrained in him. And that fear wasn't just tied to the boat crash. It had been shaped by something even more constant. Violence. Oscar recalled a terrifying moment, one that could have ended his life. He recounted being shot at while driving

[00:25:37] on a South African highway, a random act of violence, one that left him rattled, but alive. Oscar went on to speak about the constant presence of violence in his life. He said, Many members of my family have been victims of housebreakings and violent crime. He described the harrowing experiences of those closest to him. His father, in particular, had been a target. Oscar recalled how his father had been hijacked twice since he was a kid.

[00:26:07] It was clear that Oscar lived in a world shaped by fear, a fear of violence, of losing his life, and of being powerless to protect himself and those he loved. But was this fear enough to justify what happened that night? Did his fear play into any of the events that happened on Valentine's Day 2013? 2014? The courts weren't too sure. So on September 12, 2014, Oscar was found not guilty of premeditated

[00:26:36] and second-degree murder. Instead, he was charged with culpable homicide, meaning unintentional but still unlawful killing. He was sentenced to five years of prison time, but his story just doesn't end there. Oscar would apply for parole after serving 10 months out of his five-year sentence, but after there was massive public outrage, this was blocked. Instead, after spending one year behind bars, he was released to his uncle's

[00:27:06] luxury home where he was given permission to finish the remainder of his sentence on house arrest. He would be there for another year before the Supreme Court of Appeal overturned the judge's culpable homicide ruling, instead deciding that Oscar should be found guilty of murder. The argument was that Oscar should have known that by firing four shots through that bathroom door, it was very possible that he could have killed someone. The prosecution wanted him to spend

[00:27:35] 15 years in prison for the murder charge, but instead, Oscar got sent back to jail for just six years, less than half that time. The Supreme Court of Appeal would once again change their mind, later doubling his murder sentence to 13 years and five months. He was sent to a maximum security prison, renowned for holding some of South Africa's most dangerous criminals, but later he would be moved to a low-risk facility. Oscar would apply

[00:28:04] for parole in 2023, but he was denied. However, he would be granted parole in 2024 and released from prison on January 4, 2024 after serving nine of his 13-year sentence. After his release, Riva's mother would say, quote, has there been justice for Riva? Has Oscar served enough time? There can never be justice if your loved one is never coming back. And no amount of time served

[00:28:33] will bring Riva back. We who remain behind are the ones serving a life sentence. Because I was hysterical, I was screaming, I went into, he just said to me, there's been an accident. There's been an accident and your daughter's been shot. And I said, you better tell me now, straight away, is she dead or alive? And he said, I'm sorry that she's passed away.

[00:29:03] So I imagined myself at seven o'clock in the morning getting this call on Valentine's Day. Well, it's not that it matters that it was Valentine's Day, but I mean, I spoke to her when she arrived at his place and they were going to spend the evening together to celebrate Valentine. And, I don't know, I just went into almost a, I don't know, into another space. I just wanted somebody

[00:29:33] to come and knock me out and then I was wake up and it's not true. That was just too much for me. It was too much for any mother. No mother could handle that. You're a mother, you will know. No mother can handle that. Only Oscar knows. Only Oscar knows the truth, the real story. There's a huge chunk of the real story missing. And only Oscar knows that. The heartbreaking loss

[00:30:01] of Reva Steenkamp, a young woman with a promising future, hangs in the air to this day. Her life was cut short and her story, one of love, ambition, and success, was overshadowed by violence and unanswered questions. For Oscar Pistorius, once hailed as a symbol of triumph over adversity, that fateful night marked the beginning of a spiral that would forever change his legacy. Was it a tragic mistake?

[00:30:30] A moment of confusion? Or something darker? The layers of this case from the courtroom drama to the conflicting testimonies, they've left us grappling with more questions than answers. And while Oscar Pistorius walks free today, Reva's memory lives on as a symbol of a life taken too soon, perhaps at the hands of someone who once promised to love her. In the end, the truth may never be fully known, but one thing is certain.

[00:31:00] February 14th, 2013, will forever remain a day stained by tragedy, a day when love was replaced by violence, and when justice for some will always feel incomplete. That's it for me tonight. If you want to reach out, you can find me on Facebook at Serial Napper. You can find my audio on Apple or Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. I post all of my episodes in video format over on YouTube, so go check it out.

[00:31:30] And if you're watching on YouTube, I would love if you can give me a thumbs up and subscribe. I'm also on Patreon. If you'd like your Serial Napper episodes early and ad-free, hop on over and check out the details at patreon.com slash Serial Napper. Memberships are just $2 a month or $24 a year. Until next time, sweet dreams, stay kind, especially in the comments. Bye.