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Prosecutors slam Pistorius’ defense – Olympian had to have known gal pal wasn’t in bed

The floorplan of South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius' house in Pretoria.

The floorplan of South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius’ house in Pretoria. (AFP/Getty Images)

Inside Oscar's Bathroom: a graphic illustrating a suggested representation of the events that lead to Reeva Steenkamp's death.

Inside Oscar’s Bathroom: a graphic illustrating a suggested representation of the events that lead to Reeva Steenkamp’s death. (Getty Images)

Oscar's Weapons: a graphic illustrating the weapons Oscar Pistorius has applied for at the central firearms registry. Six applications are pending.

Oscar’s Weapons: a graphic illustrating the weapons Oscar Pistorius has applied for at the central firearms registry. Six applications are pending. (Getty Images)

Cops claim they found testosterone in Oscar Pistorius’ home and painted a damning picture of the suspect’s bedroom, possibly blowing a hole in the track icon’s claims that he fatally shot his girlfriend by accident, according to explosive testimony today.

Officers who scoured the Olympic hero’s Pretoria home last week — following bikini model Reeva Steenkamp’s slaying — found two boxes of “testosterone” and needles inside his bedroom, police said today.

Det. Warrant Officer Hilton Botha, a detective with 24 years on the force, took the stand Wednesday in the second day of Pistorius’ marathon bail hearing.

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Pistorius has been charged with premeditated murder in Steenkamp’s shooting death.

The second day of Pistorius’ bail hearing ended with no ruling on his bid for temporary freedom. Both sides are expected to make closing arguments tomorrow, before Chief Magistrate Desmond Nasir decides whether the Olympic hero deserve bail.

In Pistorius’ affidavit read in court yesterday, the Blade Runner said he assumed Steenkamp was in bed next to him and he walked toward the bathroom on his stumps.

Pistorius claimed he was shooting, in belief there was a dangerous intruder inside the house.

“I grabbed my 9mm pistol from underneath my bed. On my way to the bathroom, I screamed words to the effect for him/them to get out of my house and for Reeva to phone the police. It was pitch dark in the bedroom and I thought Reeva was in bed,” according to the runner’s version of events.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel today scoffed at Pistorius’ story, saying the runner’s path toward his bathroom would have taken him right by Steenkamp’s spot on the bed.

“There’s no other way of getting there,” Nel said.

Botha testified that Pistorius’ gun holster was found under the left side of the runner’s bed, where Steenkamp had slept. The cop’s testimony implied it would have been impossible for Pistorius to get the gun without realizing that Steenkamp was not in the bed — and could have been in the bathroom.

Pistorius testified yesterday that the bedroom was pitch dark.

Botha, who arrived at the scene at 4:15 local time to find Steenkamp dead at the bottom of the stairs, also said police had found unlicensed .38 ammunition in Pistorius’ house in a tony gated compound north of Pretoria.

Pistorius will be charged for the unlicensed ammo.

Pistorius’ defense team disputed Botha’s reference to “testosterone,” saying the substance was a legitimate herbal remedy called “testo-composutim co-enzyme.”

Defense attorney Barry Roux countered the detective’s claim saying that it was not a banned substance and that police were trying to give the discovery a “negative connotation.”

“It is an herbal remedy,” Roux said. “It is not a steroid and it is not a banned substance.”

Details on the makeup of “testo-composutim co-enzyme” were not immediately available but administering testosterone as an anabolic agent is banned at all times under World Anti-Doping Agency rules.

Medupe Simasiku, a spokesman for South Africa’s National Prosecution Agency, told said the substance found at the runner’s home hasn’t been absolutely identified, despite Botha’s testimony.

“It is not certain [what it is] until the forensics” tests are completed, said Simasiku, adding that it’s not clear if the substance found is “a legal or an illegal medication for now.”

The debate over the substance added another dramatic twist to a case that has already gripped the world’s attention since Steenkamp’s killing at Pistorius’ home last Thursday.

Steenkamp was shot to death, cowering inside a bathroom near the couple’s bed, officials said. Pistorius fired through the closed bathroom door.

Despite some damaging testimony today, Pistorius’ defense still poked holes in the prosecution’s case.

Botha was forced to admit he didn’t wear plastic coverings on his shoes at the crime scene. Botha said he should have slipped them on, but “they [the covers] were not around.”

The investigator was also tripped up after he said neighbors heard “non-stop talking like shouting” coming from Pistorius’ home not long before Reeva’s slaying.

Under cross-examination, Botha said those accounts came from a neighbor 600 meters away. The prosecution had to ask Botha about that again, and the detective said the distance was actually much closer the 600 meters.

The defense also drew testimony that Steenkamp had no defense wounds or any other injuries consistent with a violent brawl before she was shot.

It was revealed her bladder was empty, possibly showing she had just used the bathroom — and wasn’t there just to hide from a gun-wielding Pistorius, the defense would likely claim.

Botha said the shots were fired from five feet, and that police found three spent cartridges in the bathroom and one in the hallway connecting the bathroom to the bedroom.

The lead investigator also said Steenkamp was shot by bullets fired at a downward angle, potentially showing how Pistorius was wearing his prosthetic legs when he fired and that the shooter aimed specifically to hit somebody on the toilet.

“It seems to me it was fired down,” Botha said.

He told the Pretoria magistrates court that Steenkamp was hit by three bullets — in the head, elbow and hip.

The double-amputee, who runs on J-shaped carbon-fiber lower legs, broke down in tears as Botha testified.

The runner said he was still on his stumps and feeling vulnerable when he squeezed off the fatal shots.

“I believe that he knew that Reeva was in the bathroom and he shot four shots through the door,” Botha testified.

Police also found two iPhones in the bathroom and two BlackBerrys in the bedroom, Botha said, adding that none had been used to phone for help. Pistorius had said that he called the manager of his guarded and gated housing complex and a private paramedic service.

Roux said Pistorius did make calls, including to the guards of the housing estate. In one case, he said, a guard could hear Pistorius crying.

“Was it part of his premeditated plan, not to switch off the phone and cry?” Roux asked sarcastically.

It could be months before Pistorius goes to trial, and faces charges for the slaying that’s shocked South Africa and his legions of fans worldwide.

Pistorius said yesterday in a written affidavit that he mistakenly killed model Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine’s Day, when he fired shots into the bathroom thinking there was a dangerous intruder inside.

The prosecution claims Pistorius intended to kill the 29-year-old Steenkamp after they had a fight.

Before his arrest, Pistorius was one of South Africa’s greatest sports stars. The Blade Runner transcended the bitter racial divide that still exists in post-apartheid South Africa.

He carried South Africa’s flag at the closing ceremony of the London Olympics, and Sports Illustrated named him as one of the most inspiring figures of the year.

“Many questions are being asked, but we have no answers,” Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula said in a statement.

The sprinter’s endorsements and sponsorships included sportswear giant Nike, British telecoms firm BT, sunglasses maker Oakley and French designer Thierry Mugler and were thought to be worth as much as $2 million a year.

In his affidavit, Pistorius said he earned $630,500 a year and owned properties worth nearly $1 million.

Nike and Mugler have both dropped Pistorius from active campaigns. Cosmetics firm Clarins recalled its “A Man” fragrance out of “respect and compassion towards the families involved.”

The 29-year-old FHM model Steenkamp was a law school grad and outspoken advocate for victims of domestic violence.

Loved ones of the beauty-and-brains victim said their final goodbyes at a funeral yesterday, across the country in her native Port Elizabeth.

With AP and Reuters