New AGU head's grand plan to tackle gangs

THE Western Cape remains one of South Africa's most dangerous provinces, alongside Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, when it comes to national murder statistics.

- TRACY-LYNN RUITERS

Despite an overall 2.7% drop in contact crimes between January and March 2025, murder rates continue to plague the region, with several Cape Town neighbourhoods ranking among the most violent in the country.

Gang activity lies at the heart of much of this violence. The province is estimated to be home to between 90 and 130 gangs, with a combined membership of more than 100,000 people.

It’s a challenge Brigadier Karl Wienand, the newly appointed Commander of the Western Cape’s Anti-Gang Unit (AGU), said he is determined to confront head-on.

With 38 years of service in the police, Wienand officially took over the reins as Commander in 2024, after serving as Acting Head from 2022. He succeeded the unit’s founding commander, the late Major-General André Lincoln, who retired after almost four decades in the police.

Wienand was mentored by Lincoln, and the two worked closely together to establish many of the AGU’s current strategies, structures, and operational frameworks.

He served with the AGU since 2020, and previously stationed at the Cape Town Central command centre. Wienand brings both deep operational experience and an intimate understanding of the province's crime dynamics.

His vision, he said, is to strengthen intelligence-led operations, deepen community trust, and disrupt gang structures from the foundation up.