I looked it up and you're correct - but I wouldn't call it a trick exactly. Botha got his information from an interview with Oscar in the February issue of Sarie magazine:
(Respectfully ✄ link since new posters aren't permitted to include links before 15 posts)
Botha erred in believing Oscar told the truth in the interview.
Your link doesn't work for me but no problema since no need to break my arm for me to believe Botha could have erred in believing what OP said in an interview to the press and then used it in court!
As for the audio clip the best I can get out of it is “I wanted to ask Reeva why-i-i she's phoning the police.” I don't recall dancing with glee – it just struck me as odd. And even if you are correct and he said “why – if” it's still odd to me.
In respect of the audio and what OP says I didn't mean it as an opinion since OP definitely vocalises the word "
if". For some, whether for professional or other reasons, the aspirated "f" is quite audible, for others good equipment, looping, and slowing it down can make it easier to discern. And as I noted before, had OP said "
... I wanted to ask Reeva why she's phoning the police... ", in any shape or form, if not Nel directly observing OP, one of his team would have picked it up either at the time or when going over the video/transcript that evening and Nel would have hammered it at OP the same or next day as too good to lose. And even the transcript of OP's testimony uploaded for Bateman's book (sorry no link because of the limitation) transcribes it as "
if", as per:
(page 534 of 599)
Screaming? Why would you scream? Why would you scream out? --
- I was scared. I wanted to [intervenes]
Scream? --- I asked Reeva why... if she is phoning the police.
And although not this mistake which they have correct, Bateman's transcriber makes several errors of transcription even in that tiny piece, among them OP uses the abbreviation "
she's" and
not "
she is", and Nel vocalises "
sca(r)..." (phonetically, [sceəʳ])
not "
scream" as transcribed,
nor even "
screa..." when he intervenes. A doddle to differentiate by lipreading Nel as he speaks since "scream" uses an "open smile" long vowel while "scared" uses a "jaw drop" short one. IMO Nel was likely going to interject, "Scared !?" in his usual quizzical style but cut short to allow OP to finish.
In respect of "
dancing with glee" I wasn't referring to this blog which compared with others stands as a welcome oasis of calm and concordia where debate is still the name of the game and where it has been a pleasure to lurk reading for some time before deciding to join, so no, no allusion nor offence intended towards you or any other here.
If flaccon was still around she could probably clear it up.
Who is flaccon?
