Simon Mann
Simon Francis Mann (born 26 June 1952) is a British mercenary and former officer in the SAS. He trained to be an officer at Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Scots Guards. He later became a member of the SAS. On leaving the military, he co-founded Sandline International with fellow ex-Scots Guards Colonel Tim Spicer in 1996. Sandline operated mostly in Angola and Sierra Leone, but a contract with the government of Papua New Guinea attracted a significant amount of negative publicity in what became known as the Sandline affair.
Simon Mann | |
|---|---|
Mann in 2011 | |
| Born | 26 June 1952 Aldershot, England, UK |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army |
| Years of service | 1972–1985 1991–1994 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Service number | 494441 |
| Unit | Scots Guards 22 Special Air Service |
| Battles/wars |
Working as a mercenary: |
| Relations | George Mann (father) Frank Mann (grandfather) |
| Other work | Co-founded a number of private military corporations including Sandline International and Executive Outcomes |
On 7 March 2004, Mann is alleged to have led the 2004 Equatorial Guinea coup d'état attempt. He was arrested by Zimbabwean police in Harare airport along with 64 other mercenaries. He eventually served three years of a four-year prison sentence in Zimbabwe, and less than two years of a 34 years and four months sentence in Equatorial Guinea.