Rug lord:Tony Mokbel has been in custody since he was arrested in Athens in 2007 wearing a terrible wig (left).

As Tony Mokbel fights for freedom,the court has three options

There is this sense that the courts may be tempted to acquit the drug kingpin,to punish police for sneakily using barrister turned informer Nicola Gobbo as a spy.

  • John Silvester

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Acting Police Chief Commissioner Rick Nugent will not seek the permanent job.

Position vacant:A crushing police chief job with 18-hour days,a crime crisis and not enough police

The front-runner for the new chief commissioner role is a late scratching after he drew up a list of pros and cons for the job then walked out the door.

  • John Silvester
Victoria Police target the Outlaws Motorcycle gang’s national run back in 2013.

The bikies’ deadly code of silence

This wasn’t about snitching to police but telling the truth about the death of an innocent man,so the victim’s family could have some answers.

  • John Silvester
Craig Stewart in action in 1983.

Shedding light on sport’s deadly secret

In Melbourne,there are four or five confirmed cases a year of the neurological disorder CTE. But one of Victoria’s leading pathologists knows there will be many more.

  • John Silvester
Former Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Neil Paterson.

‘Completely untrue’:Premier denies conspiracy to dump police chiefs

Dumped Victoria Police deputy commissioner Neil Paterson has accused Premier Jacinta Allan and Police Minister Anthony Carbines of corruption over his ousting.

  • Brittany Busch,Rachel Eddie andJohn Silvester
An angry mob attack a man at North Cronulla beach on December 11,2005.

Hard lessons from the Cronulla riot

Opinions matter. When critics demonise Palestine protesters or jump to the conclusion that a cache of explosives is proof of a terrorist plot or scream outrage over a racist sign,it can light a fire they can’t control.

  • John Silvester
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It seemed like a good idea at the time:The top 10 worst ideas in law enforcement

While Premier Jacinta Allan admitted to making a mistake with the bail laws,no one ever took responsibility for these questionable decisions.

  • John Silvester
Premier Jacinta Allan announces changes to bail laws.

Having driven into a dead end on bail,the government is now desperately in reverse

Make no mistake,the state government’s bail overhaul is a political solution to a justice problem because Labor knows it’s haemorrhaging votes on law and order.

  • John Silvester
Mark Mladenich,left,and his late brother Richard,who was murdered in St Kilda in 2000.

The unsolved murder that started an underworld war

An execution on May 16,2000,wasn’t exactly headline news – but it was the first murder that began the Underbelly crime war,which would result in 16 killings over 10 years.

  • John Silvester
Soldiers in Kyiv fold a Ukrainian flag on the coffin of a soldier killed Russian troops in a battle.

The DNA detectives taking on the grim reality of Ukraine’s war

Their code is “everyone has the right to a dignified life,everyone has the right to a dignified death”. And they are using ingenious ways to identify bodies,and bring closure to families.

  • John Silvester