Mandela’s bodyguard Andre Lincoln dies at 63

Andre Lincoln

Cape Town – Major-General Andre Lincoln, former bodyguard to Nelson Mandela and head of the Western Cape’s anti-gang unit, has died at 63 after a long illness, reports said on Friday.

Remembered for his dedication to fighting crime, Lincoln served as an intelligence officer in uMkhonto weSizwe and led the Presidential Investigation Task Unit under Mandela, even thwarting an assassination attempt on the president, The Citizen reported. 

Appointed to lead the anti-gang unit in 2018, Lincoln was later involved in a controversial investigation linked to the 2020 murder of detective Charl Kinnear, the report said.

He was also falsely prosecuted in 1998 on multiple charges, including fraud, but his conviction was overturned and a later civil suit ruled in his favour, said the report.

Lincoln retired in 2021 and is survived by his wife, Shereen, and their children.

Tributes poured in from his daughter Nikki and many South Africans, who praised his legacy in policing.

“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 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 my heart with you but I know a piece of yours will stay here with me.,” Nikki said

Funeral details are yet to be announced.

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