Oscar Pistorius and his new girlfriend are said to have connected over tragedy in their lives as mystery still surrounds a devastating drowning at her brother’s bachelor party.
Pistorius, 38, is said to have found new love just months after being released from prison on parole having served nine years for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his South African home in 2013.
Sources close to the former athlete say he has entered a romantic relationship with Rita Greyling, 33, a business management consultant from Wakkerstroom in Mpumulanga.
New love Rita’s family have also made headlines when in late 2022 her brother Ghini Greyling was involved in a fatal incident at Henbase Lodge, Morgenzon.
According to local reports, Willem Kruger attended Ghini’s bachelor party in November 2022, when he disappeared and found dead nine days later.
The 29-year-old farmer, who was to be a groomsman at Ghini’s wedding, was found by police in his his white Toyota truck which was submerged in the Vaal River next to the lodge.
In December 2023, police said its investigations had shifted from an accidental drowning into a murder inquiry.
Investigators are said to be stumped on various parts of the case including where the keys were recovered from and the damage to the truck following the amount of time it was supposedly underwater, the George Herald reports.
The report add that the search was put on hold the following weekend to host a wedding at the lodge with the truck then being found in the same location divers had already searched.
Investigations continue into the death with many questions still remaining unanswered.
Friends said that the tragedies surrounding both the Pistorius and Greyling families drew them together and their reported romance marks a fresh start for both.
Rita has a successful career as a business management consultant and Pistorius is trying to rebuild his life after his release into his rich uncle’s care.
A source close to Pistorius said: ‘He is trying to rebuild his life in a low-key way and avoids bars and restaurants and the general public and is flying under the radar.
‘He is slowly trying to reintegrate into society but that is being done through families that his family have been close to for decades and is slowly slowly.
‘The word on the street for three months now is that he is dating again’ she said.
The double amputee dubbed ‘Blade Runner’ for the prosthetics he used to compete in the Olympics and Paralympics murdered Reeva in his bathroom.
He still insists he killed the 29-year-old law graduate and model by mistake and has now found a new partner that eerily resembles his ex.
Upon hearing the news of Pistorius’s new girlfriend, Reeva’s mother June warned the 33-year-old that her new boyfriend ‘still has a problem with anger’.
Speaking to The Sun, the 78-year-old said: ‘I don’t understand how she doesn’t see a red flag about him because he has not lost his temper problem.
‘He was supposed to be under anger management when he was in jail and at one stage I stopped him coming out because I was annoyed that he wasn’t having treatment.’
Pistorius claimed he woke in the early hours thinking a burglar was breaking in unaware his girlfriend Reeva was in the loo.
He fired repeated shots through the door killing her instantly with special ‘dum dum’ bullets but Reeva’s family have always claimed it was intentional.
The horrific shooting on Valentine’s Day 2013 shocked the world and led to him being jailed for culpable homicide which was later upgraded to murder.
Pistorius was released into a media storm when he was granted parole on January 5, 2024 and has fallen in love again since returning to the normal world.
Sources close to the couple have confirmed to Netwerk24 that Pistorius and Greyling are in a romantic relationship though details are being kept strictly private.
June, who founded the Reeva Steenkamp Foundation Against The Abuse of Women and Children, said it was ‘painful’ to see her daughter’s killer back in a relationship, adding that she was ‘worried’ for her.
Pistorius is now living in a cottage in the grounds of his multi-millionaire uncle Arnold’s secure mansion and is doing volunteer work at a Dutch Reform Church nearby.
His sentence ends in 2029 and as on parole is subject to checks from the Department of Corrections at any time of day to check his residence test for alcohol and drugs.
He is not allowed out of the immediate area without informing the local police force and is not allowed a firearm or any contact with Reeva Steenkamp’s mum or sister.
Pistorius is said to have difficulty finding work with pals saying employers see him as ‘toxic’ so volunteers at the church used by his family cleaning and sweeping.