Ex-Mandela bodyguard and Anti-Gang Unit boss Andre Lincoln dies

News24

30-05-2025

Former top cop and late president Nelson Mandela's former bodyguard, Major-General Andre Lincoln, died on Friday morning.
Lincoln has been remembered for his service in fighting crime.
He was the head of the Anti-Gang Unit before his 2021 retirement.
Former Anti-Gang Unit boss Major-General Andre Lincoln died on Friday morning.
Lincoln was one of late former president Nelson Mandela's bodyguards and was appointed as the Head of the Presidential Investigation Task Unit in 1996.
He also served as a Cluster Commander and later as Head of the Anti-Gang Unit, where he contributed to police efforts to tackle the scourge of gang violence in the Western Cape.
Provincial MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais, sent her condolences to the family, friends and the law enforcement fraternity.
Marais said: 'Major-General Lincoln's contribution to improving safety in the Western Cape will continue to form part of the legacy he leaves behind after serving in the SAPS for over 39 years. My thoughts are with his family during this difficult time.'
Lincoln retired in 2021. He was made head of the Anti-Gang Unit in 2018 after a career of ups and downs.
Former police boss Jeremy Vearey said Lincoln's death had been a shock.
'Our paths started together long before we joined the police,' he said.
Both had worked together in the armed struggle, and Lincoln had supported Vearey after his release from Robben Island in the 1990s.
'Andre was there when I was released from Robben Island. Some of us, as political prisoners, needed protection. Comrades like Lincoln were there for us,' Vearey recalls.
The two had worked together guarding Mandela, and Vearey recalled Lincoln's excellent evasive driving skills that had kept Mandela safe on numerous occasions.
'We were soldiers on the ground, defending our movements. I know him from battle, from blood, as a comrade for whom I would lay my life down,' he said.
He described Lincoln as a 'humble man' who had a 'core strength' and demonstrated a 'zen-like calm' that was likely born of many years of practising martial arts.
He also had a love for bonsai.
'Andre had a bonsai, which produced a micro pomegranate. It's one thing to look after your bonsai; it's another thing to have the patience to get it to bear fruit. That is understanding, a relationship with nature, that is almost spiritual.'
In an outpouring of tributes on social media, Lincoln was described as a 'soldier' who lived a 'life of serving'.
'Thank you for putting your life at risk for us, the general public. Your dedication in the line of duty is beyond the call of duty, and we are immeasurably indebted to you,' said one social media user.
My sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family of late Major General Andre Lincoln on the tragic passing of such a...
Posted by Ezra October on Thursday, May 29, 2025
His daughter, Nikki, posted: 'A part of me thought you would live forever. You were always so strong and so resilient. Imagining life without you was so impossible I let myself believe in the impossible. Rest in peace, Daddy. I don't know how to be a person without a father. I don't know how to navigate life without your wisdom. I love you forever. You took a piece of my heart with you, but I know a piece of yours will stay here with me.'
A part of me thought you would live forever. You were always so strong and so resilient, imagining life without you was...
Posted by Nikki Lincoln on Thursday, May 29, 2025
Lincoln and former Crime Intelligence chief Peter Jacobs were embroiled, with Vearey, in allegations of misconduct in one of the most recent controversies.
One of the allegations against Lincoln and Jacobs was whether they responded appropriately to an informant who warned that AGU detective Charl Kinnear's life was in danger.
Kinnear was murdered outside his house on 18 September 2020.
Lincoln had previously faced 47 criminal charges and was convicted of 17 of these in 2003. He then appealed the conviction and was acquitted on all the charges, according to a previous News24 report.
Lincoln was also among a number of senior police officers whose phone location was tracked, allegedly by former rugby player Zane Kilian, who is among those charged, along with Nafiz Modack, for the murder of Kinnear.