Oscar Pistorius: 'I thought that Reeva was in bed'- bail hearing as it happened

Oscar Pistorius has given his account of the night his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp died at his house in Pretoria. In a statement read out by his lawyer, the Paralympic and Olympic star said the two were in bed asleep on Wednesday night when he got up and went to the balcony to close a sliding door and get a fan. He heard a noise in the bathroom and assumed it was an intruder, he said. Feeling vulnerable without his prosthetic legs, he got his gun and shot through the door, he said. He then saw that Steenkamp was not in bed, he said. He broke the bathroom door down with a cricket bat, he said; Steenkamp was still alive but died in his arms. He denied that he had murdered her, saying nothing could be further from the truth.

• The prosecution gave a different version of events. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel said there was an argument before the shooting, and laterPistorius got up from bed, put on his prosthetic legs, armed himself, walked seven metres to the toilet door and shot Steenkamp four times; three of the shots killed her. Even if he thought she was a burglar, it was still premeditated murder, Nel said. But he asked why a burglar would lock himself in the toilet.

• Magistrate Desmond Nair ruled that Pistorius should be charged with premeditated murder, a “category six” offence that will make it very difficult for the defendant to be granted bail. Pistorius must argue that there are “exceptional circumstances” that mean he should get bail. In his statement Pistorius stressed that he would not leave the country if granted bail and intended to stand trial. He said he would surrender his passport and would not interfere with witnesses, saying he knew of none in this case. Nair did suggest at one point that he may change his mind about categorising the offense as schedule six once he had heard all the evidence.

• Pistorius, the world’s best known disabled athlete, broke down frequently throughout the hearing, which was adjourned at one point to allow him to compose himself. In his statement he said he was “mortified” at having killed Steenkamp and could not stand how much hurt he had caused. He said he and Steenkamp had been “deeply in love”.

• The funeral of Reeva Steenkamp was held this morning in the coastal South African city of Port Elizabeth.

• Pistorius will be held overnight at Brooklyn police station in Pretoria. The bail hearing will continue tomorrow at 9am local time (7am GMT). I hope you can join me again then.