(CNN) -- Hilton Botha, the former lead detective in the Oscar Pistorius murder case, cited "private reasons" for resigning from the police force, South African Police spokesman Brig. Neville Malila said Thursday. Botha was pulled from the Pistorius case last month after prosecutors reinstated attempted murder charges against him in a 2011 case. The 22-year South African Police veteran is accused of chasing and firing on a minibus full of people while drunk. He is charged with seven counts of attempted murder. Opinion: Not everyone surprised at Oscar Pistorius' fall from grace Pistorius, the 26-year-old double amputee track star, is accused in the killing of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, 29, last month.
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Hilton Botha was pulled from the Pistorius murder case last month
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Prosecutors reinstated attempted murder charges against Botha in a 2011 case
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Botha was the first detective on the scene of Reeva Steenkamp's shooting death
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Sprinter Oscar Pistorius is accused in the killing of his girlfriend
His removal from the high-profile murder case came just days after his testimony at a bail hearing for @placeholder that included admissions that police could have contaminated the crime scene and failed to properly catalog evidence.