South African authorities deny issuing arrest warrant for Pistorius

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African authorities on Friday denied issuing a warrant of arrest for Oscar Pistorius, who was convicted on appeal of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, rejecting an earlier report by a local television station. "It is not the case," Luvuyo Mfaku told Reuters. "No such warrant has been issued." The Supreme Court on Thursday upgraded the 29-year-old athlete's sentence to murder from "culpable homicide", South Africa's equivalent of manslaughter, for which he had received a five-year sentence. A murder conviction normally carries a minimum 15-year jail sentence. (Reporting by James Macharia; Editing by Catherine Evans)