Pollsmoor Prison: 10 notable former inmates

Pollsmoor Prison, located in the Cape Town suburb of Tokai, opened in 1964.

ALSO READ: Prison life: The daily routine of an inmate at Pollsmoor

The land on which the prison lies was bought by Hendrick van der Poll in 1834, hence the name.

The land, which was inherited by Van der Poll’s wife Johanna Kirsten’s family after the couple died, still houses their graves today which are situated behind the old Pollsmoor police office.

It is a maximum security penal facility that continues to hold some of South Africa’s most dangerous criminals.

The prison was designed for a maximum capacity of 4 336 offenders attended by a staff of 1 278.

ALSO READ: Prison Journalism: Life in Pollsmoor prison for the first time

Over the years the prison has been expanded and today comprises five prisons:

• The Admission Centre serves a number of the courts in the Cape Peninsula (Cape Town, Mitchell’s Plain, Somerset West and Wynberg)
• Medium A Prison houses both awaiting trial and sentenced juveniles between the ages of 14 and 17
• Medium B Prison houses sentenced adult males
• Medium C Prison houses sentenced adult males with sentences of up to a year, sentenced adult males on day-parole or soon-to-be-released males
• The Female Prison houses juvenile (under 18) and adult women, both awaiting-trial and sentenced. There are also a number of infants under the age of 2 living in the Female Prison

NOTABLE FORMER POLLSMOOR PRISON INMATES

Nelson Mandela – South Africa’s first president of a democratic South Africa was held in Pollsmoor prior to his release from prison by the apartheid government

Marlene Lehnberg – Known as The Scissor Murderess, served her sentence in Pollsmoor but was paroled in 1986

Walter Sisulu – Political prisoner, senior ANC member and anti-apartheid activist

Ahmed Kathrada – Political prisoner, senior ANC member and anti-apartheid activist

Andrew Mlangeni – Political prisoner, senior ANC member and anti-apartheid activist

Jafta Masemola – Political prisoner, co-founder and senior PAC member and anti-apartheid activist

Elias Motsoaledi – Political prisoner, senior ANC member and anti-apartheid activist

Wilton Mkwayi – Political prisoner, senior ANC member and anti-apartheid activist

Oscar Mpetha – Political prisoner, senior ANC member, unionist and anti-apartheid activist

Allan Boesak – Served his prison term at Pollsmoor after he was convicted of fraud in 2000

ALSO READ: Prison journalism: The feelings I hold for Nelson Mandela