Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Pistorius and Donovan Moodley – convicted for the murders of Reeva Steenkamp and Leigh Matthews respectivelyy – become eligible for a parole hearing in 2023.
Images via 2023

Last Christmas behind bars for Oscar Pistorius, Donovan Moodley?

Oscar Pistorius and Donovan Moodley, who murdered Reeva Steenkamp and Leigh Matthews respectively, are set for parole hearings in 2023.

Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Pistorius and Donovan Moodley – convicted for the murders of Reeva Steenkamp and Leigh Matthews respectivelyy – become eligible for a parole hearing in 2023.
Images via 2023

Oscar Pistorius and Donovan Moodley, the men convicted of murdering Reeva Steenkamp and Leigh Matthews respectively, may be spending their final Christmas behind bars after being given fresh hope of parole in 2023.

The men are set for parole hearings next year, with the chance of them being released from prison highly probable.

Reeva was shot and killed at her Paralympian boyfriend’s Pretoria home on 14 February 2014. A decade earlier, in 2004, the naked body of Leigh Matthews was found after being kidnapped and murdered.

ALSO READ: ‘Open wounds’: Reeva’s family support Pistorius parole delay

PAROLE UPDATE: DONOVAN MOODLEY AND OSCAR PISTORIUS

Last week, Donovan Moodley was given a fighting chance at parole after his bid in a Gauteng High Court to overturn an application denying him an early release was successful.

ALSO READ: Oscar Pistorius: Parole application REMOVED from roll

In 2005, Moodley was sentenced to life behind bars after being convicted of kidnapping and murdering Leigh Matthews a year earlier. Additionally, he was given 15 years for kidnapping and ten years for extortion, with his sentence running concurrently.

In 2021, 17 years after Leigh’s murder, IOL reported that Donovan Moodley was up for a parole hearing.

In January 2022, the family of Leigh Matthews hotly contested the process as part of their mediation. Ultimately, Moodley was denied parole.

Oscar Pistorius
Oscar Pistorius shot and killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp (left), a decade after the death of Bond University student Leigh Matthews. Images via Twitter

ALSO READ: ‘I didn’t say I forgive you’: Reeva’s dad details Pistorius meeting

However, Judge Stuart Wilson last week ordered that Moodley will be granted a parole hearing no later than 31 March 2023.

Moodley – representing himself after acquiring two law degrees while incarcerated – has been ordered to submit all necessary reports and documentation ahead of his hearing.

According to IOL, a previous rejection by the parole board constituted “unlawful administrative action” given the recommendations of a psychologist, social worker, and case management committee.

ALSO READ: Bombshell doccie: Did Pistorius text ex, brother ‘delete’ evidence?

Meanwhile, Oscar Pistorius will also be granted a parole hearing in 2023 when he becomes eligible after serving half his sentence. The former athlete shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day in 2014.

In December 2015, Pistorius was convicted of culpable homicide and handed a six-year prison sentence.

However, his charge was changed to murder, and his jail term increased to 13 years following an unsuccessful appeal in November 2017.

According to South African law, offenders become eligible for parole after serving half their sentence. The parole hearing does not necessarily mean the offender will be granted an early release. It does mean that the offender will be considered.

ALSO READ: ‘Trustworthy, positive’: Why officials claim Pistorius deserves parole

LEIGH MATTHEWS’S DAD MEETS WITH REEVA’S PARENTS

Meanwhile, the father of Leigh Matthews has shared his experience with the family of Reeva Steenkamp amid their daughter’s killer Oscar Pistorius becoming eligible for parole.

The father of the Bond University student shared his views on part one of the M-Net docu-series My Name Is Reeva, which aired in August.

In the first episode, the distraught dad recounts his own experience earlier this year after Leigh’s murderer Donovan Moodley became eligible for parole.

ALSO READ: ‘I don’t want to see him’: Reeva’s mom refused Oscar Pistorius parole meet

Speaking on camera, Leigh Matthews’s dad Bob revealed that he had reached out to Reeva Steenkamp’s parents, June and Barry.

In June, Oscar met with Reeva’s dad Barry Steenkamp as part of the Correctional Service’s Victim Offender Dialogue. The meeting is part of the department’s “restorative justice process” between the offender and the victim’s family.

June rejected the opportunity to face her daughter’s killer.

Similarly, the parents of Leigh Matthews are also contending with their daughter’s killer’s parole process. In January, the family of the 21-year-old student contested Donovan Moodley’s parole.

Speaking to media gathered outside the Johannesburg Correctional Facility, Rob Matthews said: “The truth of the matter is 17 years later, Moodley has not changed. He is still the same lying, conniving, deceitful individual”.

DONOVAN MOODLEY SHOWED ‘NO REMORSE’

Speaking in the doccie, Rob claimed that there were still several unanswered questions surrounding his daughter’s kidnapping and death. He added that Moodley had shown “no remorse” amid five unsuccessful appeals to his sentence.

Bob said: “For us, it was incredibly traumatic. I thought that maybe as parents, we could reach out to each other and share some of our experiences. Because it’s very lonely out there.

“I think the parole system is broken because there is not enough investment put into this process. So it’s almost the tail wagging the dog. This process can make or break you”.

ALSO READ: Leigh Matthews’s dad on Oscar Pistorius parole: ‘The system is broken’

Of the parent’s involvement in the parole process, Leigh’s dad claimed: “What you’re doing is for your loved one that is no longer with you.

“That day is a flood of memories that come through.

“But you have to remember what you’re doing to make sure the perpetrator of the crime doesn’t get an early release based on something that they are not deserving of.

“You have to put your story forward in a convincing way to the parole board so that they have a full understanding of the hurt that you as a family are going through.”