'It will terrify you but it's a story you must know.' - Mandy Wiener

It was one of the most brutal criminal acts of the post-apartheid era, and its consequences were devastating.

At least a thousand people died between 2011 and 2019 as a result of one senior police officer's criminal decision to sell a huge cache of guns. Colonel Christiaan Prinsloo, former head of the Gauteng firearm license division, and his network of cronies sold guns decommissioned by the SAPS to South Africa's gang lords. The sale of these weapons led to a killing spree of unprecedented proportions.

Based on interviews with police and the criminal underworld, this book tells the story of this callous crime for the first time. Shaw explores how the illegally sold guns got into the hands of South Africa's crime bosses. The book describes the bloodbath that ensued and uncovers accounts of rampant corruption within the police and in the gun-licensing system, probing the government failure that has been instrumental in arming the country's gangsters.

About the Author

Mark Shaw is a criminologist, author of Hitmen for Hire (2017), and director of the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

Book Information
ISBN 9781776191406
Author Mark Shaw
Format Paperback
Page Count 280
Imprint Jonathan Ball Publishers SA
Publisher Jonathan Ball Publishers SA
Weight(grams) 223g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 19mm