Crime Bosses. John Kerr

AT THE TOP OF THE HEAP, IT'S A LONG WAY DOWN…<br /><br /> The Little Fella, George Freeman, phoned to tell the owner of The Palace, an illegal Kings Cross casino, that everything was 'sweet in town – for now'. An all-clear from Sydney's gaming boss. He tended to have the right oil.<br /><br /> Beer, served in contravention of liquor licence conditions, at heavily marked up prices, was the liquid gold that gave Abe Saffron his start as a crime boss. 'Mr Sin' rebuilt Kings Cross from there.<br /><br /> Carl Williams joked that he ran Victoria, that he was 'the premier'. He wasn't of course, but he behaved like the State's Lord High Executioner for five bloody years. Why?<br /> For 12 years, nine blocks of Cabramatta were Heroin Central. Tri Minh Tran's 5T street gang run them.<br /><br /> L'Onorata Societa [The Honored Society], our mafia, celebrates 100 years since its first killing in the 2020s. Here, we look at how bosses handle succession and generational change. Shotguns appear regularly.