Top pathologist hired by Pistorius refuses to testify

A star pathologist hired by Oscar Pistorius has said he will not testify at the athlete’s murder trial, another blow for the defence after a week of savage cross-examination.

Private forensic pathologist Reggie Perumal — who joined Pistorius’s hand-picked team soon after Reeva Steenkamp was killed on February 14, 2013 — will not take the stand, amid suggestions that his autopsy findings support key parts of the prosecution’s case.

Perumal has appeared in many high-profile cases in South Africa, where a private pathologist can cost upwards of $2,000 (€1,445) a day. He was hired by Pistorius in time to attend Steenkamp’s autopsy.