Reeva Steenkamp felt 'less stressed' after shooting gun at range, reveal photographs

Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius' slain girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp has been shown in new photographs visiting a firing range and shooting at a target with a pistol similar to the one that got her killed at the hands of her boyfriend Pistorius.

According to the pictures, Steenkamp is shown clasping a 9mm handgun virtually identical to the Taurus seized by South African police as evidence of her murder, the Sun reports.

Steenkamp, who could be seen in the pictures concentrating fiercely on her target while wearing a white vest top, jeans and ear defenders, had visited the shooting range with her friends months before she started dating Pistorius.

After her shooting stint, Steenkamp had reportedly written on Twitter- 'Shooting games this morning! I feel less stressed now'.

According to a source, the pictures have given a new twist into the investigation as they show that Steenkamp was used to handling firearms and would not have felt uncomfortable having a boyfriend who kept one by his bed.

However, a Steenkamp family spokesman said that her family was unaware about Steenkamp knowing how to use a handgun, adding that her father had never taught her to use such a weapon.