Oscar Pistorius told a friend he was "terrified" of returning to prison days before he was convicted of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

The news came as prosecutors in South Africa issued an arrest warrant for teh 29-year-old after his conviction of culpable homicide - similar to manslaughter - was changed to that of murder.

Pistorius told his friend Kevin Lerena: "I don't want to go back to jail. It's a terrible place, so disgusting you can't imagine", the Daily Mail reports.

Pistorius found guilty of murder by court of appeal

Mr Lerena said he feared for the sprinter's life, after incarceration left him "so low and without anything to live for."

He added "He has been left so down and broken by just one year inside, I don't even want to think about what is going to happen to him if he goes back for any longer. I don't think he will be able to handle it.

"I am just worried he is going to do something stupid. He just seems to have given up on life."

He went on to say: "I know they don't let them have anything in jail that they can harm themselves with, but, you know, this is South Africa, and you can buy stuff you want, even in jail."