An apparatus for mobile positioning and a method therefor are disclosed for determining the location of a mobile unit in a wireless communication system. First, an angle of arrival of a wireless signal transmitted by a mobile unit and being incident on a base station is determined by using an arrival angle estimator including a switched cross-correlator, an accumulator, and a phase detector. Next, the distance between the mobile unit and the base station is estimated according to timing information provided by the base station, such as timing-advance parameter of global system for mobile communications. The mobile unit is then positioned according to the angle of arrival and the distance between the base station and the mobile unit. Mobile positioning can be achieved according to the invention, using one base station without substantially modifying the existing base stations. In addition, the performance of positioning can be significantly improved.