Let's get the story of Abraham Gilbert Saffron down. Just the facts, Your Honour.
Wherever you find entertainers performing in neon-lit pubs and clubs, chances are you will find a wannabe gangster or two hanging around. Selling sex and drugs has always been a way to make a fast buck - and potential customers are more open to temptation in pubs, bars, dance halls and nightclubs.
Abe Saffron figured all this out very quickly. He was a chancer who kickstarted his criminal career SP bookmaking and receiving stolen goods. While he earned himself a quid or two, he wanted much more, and he was ruthless enough to seize any moment to get it ... no matter what he had to do.
Running pubs opened up opportunities for young Abe. By the 1940s, American servicemen on leave from the war were flooding Sydney looking for booze, food, girls, sex and entertainment - and a lot of all of it. And they had cash. Lots of cash.Â
