CALLS FROM CRIME BOSS

Q Tell me about the day you got a call from infamous Aussie crime figure George Freeman (right).

A A group of us at the Gold Coast had lodged a defamation lawsuit against bookmaker Terry Page for a column he wrote in a paper claiming we wouldn’t take bets. It was well known he and George were good friends. I got a call from George asking me to drop the lawsuit as a favour to him. We agreed and he said, ‘Laurie you have done me an extreme favour, if you ever need me I’ll be on the first plane.’ I never did need him, of course.

Q That wasn’t your only encounter with him, was it? There was another not long after the first.

A Weeks later one of his ex-minders brought a nice cutlery set as a gift along with a note saying, ‘Please don’t be offended.’ I still have the letter.

Q You actually ran into him a third time at a restaurant a few years later and developed a quirky relationship, correct? A Until the day he died he would ring me once a fortnight to discuss punting and racing. I think he was a lonely man at the time. He lived on a property and had no one to talk to. All he wanted to do was talk about racing and how things were going. I could only speak about how I found him and that was a very nice, approachable man.

Q Terry Page wanted to take your mantle on the Gold Coast. What happened to him?

A He retired after having 3½ years here due to stress. He was a good bettor, my word he was, but he never took my mantle off me. He was a Sydney leader with Bill Waterhouse.