THE SAD PASSING OF ROBERT JOSEPH DYSON

Born on 3 May 1940
Passed away on 14 December 2017
Late of MOUNT SHERIDAN
Aged 77 years

I was deeply saddened when I received an email from Shannon Hastie, Bob’s Granddaughter, notifying me of his passing. 

Bob was already a First Class Prison Officer when I joined the Department of Corrective Services in May 1971.  He was a great man and an immense inspiration for me to keep pursuing my career.  

Bob was an Officer who was firm but fair in his dealings with all of those with whom he came into contact.  He did not suffer fools lightly.  He called a spade a spade and you always knew where you stood with him. Just one of his many wonderful qualities.

Bob and I became good friends and my family has visited his home on a number of occasions where we enjoyed the company of his wife Elizabeth and his young children. 

Bob was a man with strict morals and upright intentions. I also enjoyed his company on a number of social occasions.

In the last year or two, we were in constant contact.  He helped me immensely in the writing of my books and shared many stories that my readers will surely remember.  I have often written about Bob under the title of “The Tall Man”. 

You can read many stories about Bob in my books “Cutting the Bars -  Volumes 1, 2 & 3” and “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”.  It was Bob who gave me the information for my chapter on Katingal.  He had been hand selected to work in Australia’s first Supermax Prison at the Long Bay Complex by the then Superintendent John McTaggart.  He worked there from the day it opened until the day it controversially closed.

Following the closure of Katingal, Bob was transferred to the Metropolitan Remand Centre and was later promoted to the illustrious rank of Assistant Superintendent. 

Bob has always been forthright in his opinions in relation to the New South Wales Prison System. He was never afraid to write letters and speak on talk back radio in relation to some of the issues he did not agree with, in fact he kept me well informed of these, and some of my previous blogs are a result of information supplied to me from Bob.

I will miss our telephone calls and emails that we so regularly enjoyed.  Bob was a good, loyal friend and I will cherish every moment we spent together, both working and socially.  

Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Liz and their family at this very sad time.  There is no doubt that Liz has not only lost her beloved husband of many years, but also her best friend.

His granddaughter Shannon has set up a memorial site for you to peruse and leave a comment should you wish to do so.  The link to the site is: https://www.heavenaddress.com/Robert-Joseph-Dyson/1780530/

Bob suffered from that insidious disease cancer which took him much too soon.  We will miss you Bob.  Rest in peace old mate.

Peter and Margaret Egge

Funeral service will be held at Chapel of Cairns Crematorium, Foster Road, Mount Sheridan, QLD on Friday, 22nd December 2017 at 11:00 AM. Committal service will be held at Cairns Crematorium, Foster Rd, QLD.

Open letter to the Honourable Robert Borsak MLC

OPEN LETTER TO THE HONOURABLE ROBERT BORSAK MLC, CHAIRMAN OF INQUIRY INTO PARKLEA CORRECTIONAL CENTRE

PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE NO 4 – LEGAL AFFAIRS

The Honourable Robert Borsak,

I worked at Parklea Prison as a Senior Assistant Superintendent from January 1984 until June 1985.  At that time Parklea Prison was a Government run institution.  It was specifically designed for unit management.  The staffing numbers were formulated for unit management and the industries that were set up at the time. 

In relation to your Reference (a) Staffing level:  I bring to your notice that Parklea Prison was opened in late 1983.  Some time following my departure from Parklea, the prison wings were redesigned and the staffing reduced quite dramatically in an effort to cut costs.  This never works.  There have been two major riots at Parklea.

Reference (b) Inflow of contraband:  Following the Royal Commission into New South Wales Prisons in 1978 by Justice Nagle, the introduction of contact visits opened the floodgates to the flow of contraband into maximum security institutions.  At such visits staffing levels have always been at a minimum and continual surveillance is completely impossible.  Prior to the introduction of contact visits in maximum security institutions, there was always a barrier between the prisoner and the visitor, thus prohibiting the introduction of contraband considerably.  Contrary to popular belief, I do not believe that most contraband is introduced into the prisons by prison officers.  By far the majority of prison officers are true and honest people and are beyond reproach.  Being a prison officer is not a job, but a way of life.  I do concede that on occasions an officer who is either naive or corrupt may have introduced contraband into the prison, but the majority I believe comes through contact visits as well as some being thrown over the walls concealed inside objects such as tennis balls. 

I have a very strong view in relation to Reference (e) Appropriateness of operation of private prisons:  The New South Wales tax payers, through the Australian Government, pay millions of dollars each year to the United Nations to which Australia has been a proud and financial member since its inception.  I believe that private prisons go against the United Nations charter.

The following is an extract from the document entitled Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and related recommendations of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

46     (1)  The prison administration shall provide for the careful selection of every grade of the personnel, since it is on their integrity, humanity, professional capacity and personal suitability for the work that the proper administration of the institutions depends.

(2)  The prison administration shall constantly seek to awaken and maintain in the minds of both the personnel and of the public the conviction that this work is a social service of great importance, and to this end all appropriate means of informing the public should be used.

          (3)   To secure the foregoing ends, personnel shall be appointed on a full-time basis as professional prison officers and have civil service status with security of tenure subject only to good conduct, efficiency and physical fitness”.

My research has shown that this document is still current and in use today.  Please note there is no room in the above document for casual employed prison officers.  I am more than willing to supply more information should you wish me to do so.  You can contact me by email at petertegge@gmail.com

I am unable to comment on Reference (c), (d) and (f).

This I believe

Peter T Egge

A Murderous Time at Her Majesty’s Gaol Parramatta

Looking back over Mr Kay’s career, by the end of November 1979 he had completed his training course under the guidance of Principal Prison Officer Harry Fieldhouse, and was initially placed at Her Majesty’s Gaol Parramatta as a Probationary Prison Officer.   Right from the get go it appeared to the young Probationary Prison Officer Michael Kay that he was working in a mad house. There was one critical incident after another in the four years he was working at Parramatta Gaol, in fact there were seven murders that occurred at Parramatta Gaol during that time, in addition to other deaths in custody, plus a major riot.  

Mr Kay seemed to be caught up in all of the seven murders in one way or another, some to a lesser degree than others, however to be involved in seven murders, regardless of the fact that he was working in an occupation where it was not uncommon for such tragic episodes to occur, there were so many, that the intricate details of each murder became blurred between one and the next.  Even given the environment in which he was working, it was a substantial series of horrific incidents for such a young officer to deal with. I would compare it to the equivalent of a highway patrol policeman attending fatal car accidents where they just seem to keep occurring without any respite for the police officers’ attending who having to deal with the continual trauma of witnessing regular carnage and death.

Mr Kay told me, “I remember one, I cannot remember his name, but I remember his face and the blood.  I was in the cell with two ambulance officers who were working on the inmate.  Blood seemed to be coming from numerous holes all over him; they put a set of blow up trousers on him to try to force some blood back to where it was needed most.  Arthur Barton was the Superintendent at the time”.(Mr Barton was a tallish man with red hair and very fair completion).“He had a stutter problem; he stood at the door and looked at all the blood, and obviously thinking, ‘not another one’, as this was about murder number six or seven, he said, and I remember it as if it was yesterday, stuttering, ‘I hope he doesn’t ffffffffffffucking die!’Clearly he was thinking he was going to have to do more reports.  I looked up at him and thought to myself, ‘sorry sir, but he is already dead’. The inmate had his eyes rolled back in his head and had the death shakes, blood was nearly the thickness of the soles of my shoes all over the floor.  I will never forget it.  Clearly he was never going to make it.    Next the prison doctor arrived, Dr Mutton. The ambulance officers looked up as if expecting some wonderful help and the good old doc just stood there and said, ‘Oh my fucking God’.  The ambulance officers went back to work on him, albeit in vain”.

To read more about Officer Kay’s traumatic experiences during his long prison career, read my latest Ebook Australia’s Best Prison Stories, available on Amazon.

You can contact me on petertegge@gmail.com

RESCUE DOGS WORKING IN NEW SOUTH WALES PRISONS

RESCUE DOGS WORKING

IN

NEW SOUTH WALES

PRISONS

It is a pleasure to have a good story to report on in the New South Wales Prisons for a change.  For some reason, it seems to me it’s all doom and gloom.

The Prison Officer’s Union is the Public Service Association.  Their news magazine is titled ‘Red Tape’. 

I received my October-December 2017 issue this morning and I was delighted to see a wonderful article on two young Prison Officers who are working in the Department’s K9 Training Team. 

The dogs they are training were rescue dogs from Herds2Homes, a great organisation whose charter is to get rescue farm dogs and rehouse them. 

The dogs are trained and put to work sniffing out a variety of drugs within the NSW Prison system.  If we believe the publicity and I do, the NSW Prison system is full of drugs and therefore these two young dogs and their handlers should be of great value to the Department and to the public in general. 

The handler above is First Class Prison Officer Mick Campbell with his 22 month old kelpie-cross ‘Seb’.   Mr. Campbell undertook a four month intensive training course with his faithful companion Seb, who lives at home with his master.

Mr. Campbell is also shown in the photo below with his work colleague, First Class Prison Officer Greg Breeze and his faithful dog ‘Wilbur’ who is 21 months old and is also a kelpie-cross. 

Mr. Breeze is quoted as saying “Coming to work with your mates and these great dogs. It’s a good place to be”, and for my money, I could only imagine that it would be.

First Class Prison Officer Mick Campbell with his dog ‘Seb’ and First Class Prison Officer Greg Breeze with his dog ‘Wilbur’.

Photos and story in general courtesy of Red Tape – Public Service Association of New South Wales.

Simply a great story.

This I believe.

Peter T Egge

PARKLEA PRISON OFFICER STABBED

I would have thought by now that the New South Wales Premier, the Minister for Corrective Services and the NSW Parliament in general would be embarrassed by the mismanagement of their prison system. 

I was disturbed to read in the Sydney Daily Telegraph on 28th September 2017, that a young prison officer was stabbed by a 29 year old prisoner.

Mr Peter Severin has learned nothing from the history of Parklea Prison.  It was in 3 Wing in this very prison that I was attacked by prisoner William Booth with a knife on 20th June 1985, some 32 years ago.   Seemingly nothing has changed.   You can read more about this incident in my first eBook, It’s All in the Fall.

There are Occupational Health & Safety laws that all employers, (including Mr Severin of the Department of Corrective Services), are required to strictly abide by, regardless of the perceived dangers in the prison environment.

All prison officers are entitled to go home at the end of their shift in exactly the same condition as when they left home, prior to their shift. 

The Premier has shown no outward signs of support for prison officers who are carrying out a hard, dangerous and thankless job.

Please Premier Berejiklian! It is time to remove Mr Severin and his team of do gooders.  Stop wasting Government funds on unproven schemes in the name of rehabilitation and spend that money more wisely on first time young offenders.

This I  believe
Peter T Egge

A WONDERFUL EMAIL

I received a wonderful email from Leonie Gainge thanking me for my memoir to her Nan, the late Thelma Langford.

Leonie told me that she had Googled her Nan and came across my blog.  She has since downloaded my EBook It’s All in the Fall available on Amazon.

She said, “Your words were beautiful and described Nan to an absolute tee!  Hard as nails with a heart of hold”.

She also gave me some further information concerning our late colleague Thelma Langford.  She passed just one and a half months shy of her 88th birthday.  She was born on 28th April 1929.  She was a mother of two, a grandmother of five, a great-grandmother of 11 and a great-great grandmother of five.

I believe Thelma was extremely lucky to have such a wonderful grand-daughter as Leonie Gainge.  She and her two sisters, Roslyn and Danielle, as well as her mother Alison were with Thelma as she passed.

Thank you Leonie for your heart felt email.  It makes my writing worthwhile and adds a different dimension to the value of writing such stories.

I wish you and your family the very best for the future.


This I believe.

Peter T. Egge

CLYDE PIGGOTT

I was saddened to hear of the passing of Clyde Piggott.

When I started with the Department of Corrective Services in May of 1971, Clyde was a Chief Prison Officer.  He was well respected and was one of those Officers who went about his business with no fuss or bother.

I spoke to Frank (Karate Jack) Hutchen about Clyde’s passing.  Frank told me that Clyde was born in the same month and year as him, in 1932.  Frank went on to say that Clyde had joined the Department prior to him.  They often discussed poultry and ducks in particular.  Clyde later transferred to Glen Innes Prison Camp and set up his own duck farm following his retirement.

Bob Dyson joined the Department in 1966 and Clyde was his Night Senior on his first “B” Watch (midnight to 8am).  You can read about Bob’s experience on this particular shift with Clyde in my latest book Australia’s Best Prison Stories.

Although I did not spend a great deal of time working with Clyde, I had got to know him and him me.  He was always thoughtful and willing to pass on his wisdom and advice.  He will be sadly missed by those of us who knew him.

Peter T Egge

JOHN DAVID HANNAFORD – PENAL SERVITUDE FOR LIFE

John David Hannaford, commonly known as David Hannaford, was 32 years of age and employed as a cleaner in 1972.  He lived with his wife and her 15 month old daughter Victoria Catherine Somers from a previous marriage, in Lawson Street Redfern, an inner city suburb of Sydney NSW.

From all accounts Hannaford had been drinking heavily on 7th December 1972 and what happened next is beyond belief.   Hannaford in a rage of natural rejection from little 15 month old Victoria, began the worst case of child abuse from a step father and part guardian that I have ever heard.

Extracts from the police record of interview tended to the court, Hannaford said, “I wish I was a mercenary.  There is always the smell of dust and blood which I like and I also like to see children, old women and old men being killed”.  He continued on, “I enjoy being a sadist and that when things were not in their correct place I fly into an uncontrollable rage”.

To read more about this despicable excuse of a human being, read my latest eBook Australia’s Best Prison Stories, available on Kindle through Amazon.

ROBERT (BOB) DYSON

I received a phone call from Bob Dyson last week where he informed me that he was ill and required surgery later this week.

I believe the surgery to be quite serious, yet Bob maintains a very positive outlook which is always helpful in situations such as his.

He is very fortunate that his good wife Liz is extremely supportive and doing everything possible to prepare him for surgery, including preparing special food that he requires prior to his surgery.

Bob was always one of these Prison Officers that remained level headed and gave sound advice.  He enjoyed a joke and a bit of fun, yet when it came to his duties, he took them seriously and carried them out to his utmost ability.  He was senior to me and I always enjoyed working under his supervision.  Bob retired in 1980 as an Assistant Superintendent.

Bob, like all Prison Officers, dealt with his share of extremely hardened, dangerous and ruthless criminals.  One such criminal was Lionel Roy Barlow.  His crimes were beyond belief.  You can read about Barlow and other exploits by Bob Dyson in a number of my eBooks, including my latest eBook, Australia’s Best Prison Stories available on Amazon.

Bob phones me every two or three weeks and we enjoy chatting together about the old, as well as the current, Prison stories.

I wish Bob a successful outcome to his surgery and a speedy recovery.

Peter T Egge

A CLASSIC PRISON TALE

H M GAOL – COOMA

The Mr Mortlock Saga 

A young Frank Hutchen became a Probationary Prison Officer in 1958 and had been posted to HM Gaol Cooma.  He had been brought up at Narrabri in NSW, a rich farming area in the north of the state.   He had left school early and tried his hand at everything from driving trucks to shearing sheep, whatever he put his hands to he excelled at, “If it was worth doing, it was worth doing well” he would often say.  Mr Hutchen and his lovely wife Rose moved kit and caboodle to Cooma to take up this new challenge of becoming a prison officer.

Regardless of who you are, or how good you are, it takes a year or two before you can call yourself a prison officer.   Like most trades or jobs, there are plenty of tricks and intricacies to learn.

It was 1960 and Mr Hutchen was on a set of “B” watches, (midnight until 08.00 hours).   From midnight until about 07.00 hours on the “B” watch at Cooma, only one officer worked in the gaol, completely on his own, as was the case on this particular night.  The Superintendent lived only metres from the front gate and would on occasions check on the officer on duty at irregular hours.

It was about 03.00 hours when Mr Hutchen heard the clang of the steel handle of the bolt to the front gate fall heavily on the steel grill bars.  It was an old trick he had learnt, if the handle was left up, when anyone came through the gate, the clang of metal hitting metal could be heard all over the gaol in the still of the night.

Part of his duties was to check the fire in the boiler house and to stoke the cook’s stoves in the kitchen.   Naturally he would pause there on a cold night to try to put some warmth back into his body.  

Mr Hutchen ran to the corner of the wing and saw Mr Mortlock, the Superintendent, coming through the gate.   He probably got up to go to the toilet in the middle of the night as most older men do and thought to himself, ‘I might go and check on the officer on duty’.  Mr Mortlock locked the gate behind him and headed straight for boiler house, hoping to find Mr Hutchen there, if not, perhaps asleep.  If he thought that, he was barking up the wrong tree, in fact he was barking up the wrong forest as Mr Hutchen had never, and would never sleep in a gaol on night work, to do so would be almost suicidal and very fool hardy.

Having not found Mr Hutchen in the normal places he would find lesser men, Mr Mortlock headed for the cookhouse.  All the time Mr Hutchen had him under surveillance.  Mr Hutchen told me, “I ran back around the wall coming up on the eastern wall where the stairs lead to the kitchen.  “I watched him go up the stairs looking in the kitchen”, but it was all to no avail as Mr Hutchen was not there.   Mr Hutchen continued, “I stood up close to the corner of the wing where the opening came out under the stairs to the eastern wall.  “Mr Mortlock came down the stairs, around under the stairs walking straight out the opening where I was standing.   “As he passed the corner of the wing I stepped out and shoved my gun in his ribs and said, ‘Holt!  ‘Who goes there’?    “Mr Mortlock threw his hands in the air, staggered and began to stumble, at the same time chewing on his cigarette holder”.  Mr Hutchen had to take hold of him by the arm to prevent him from falling over.

To read more about this classic Prison tale, read my short story eBook, Cutting the Bars – Volume 2, available on Amazon.

REHIBILITATION DOES NOT EXIST FOR SEX OFFENDERS

Justice J F Nagle (Deceased)

Photo 1997 – The Border Mail, Albury NSW

“It is wrong to say that one purpose for which offenders are sent to prison is to rehabilitate or cure them?    They are sent to prison by courts on behalf of society for the simple purpose of punishment”.


Justice Nagle 1978.
Royal Commissioner into New South Wales Prisons


Convicted sex offender Arthur Alliband was this week sentenced to a further two years and ten months following yet another sex offence against a young girl.  He had previously been convicted of sex offences against a 14 year old girl.  To make matters worse, the current offences for which he was convicted, had been carried out on his way home from being released on parole from Parklea Prison, a Gaol that I knew well having worked as a Senior Assistant Superintendent at Parklea Prison.

Most common sense psychologists agree that there is no rehabilitation for sex offenders.  Justice Nagle was the controversial Justice who presided over the Royal Commission into New South Wales Prisons in the late 70’s.  Since then, the Prison system has gone to “pot” so to speak.  Yet Justice Nagle made the very strong statement quoted above in his Royal Commission findings in 1978.  Parole in itself is a failure, in particular for violent crimes, drug related offenses and in particular sex offenses.  Perhaps it’s time to change the name from NSW Department of Corrective Services to NSW Department of Prisons to enable the “do-gooders” to have it clear in their head, that these people are placed behind the high brick walls and razor wire for the simple purpose of punishment.  We need our Governments to stand up and protect the public from these individuals who continually commit crimes against our most vulnerable in society.  The Government and courts “just don’t get it”, and shame on them.

To read more on my thoughts about rehabilitation, read my latest eBook, Australia’s Best Prison Stories, available on Amazon.

This I believe.
Peter T Egge

A Murderous Time at Her Majesty’s Gaol Parramatta

Looking back over Mr Kay’s career, by the end of November 1979 he had completed his training course under the guidance of Principal Prison Officer Harry Fieldhouse, and was initially placed at Her Majesty’s Gaol Parramatta as a Probationary Prison Officer.   Right from the get go it appeared to the young Probationary Prison Officer Michael Kay that he was working in a mad house. There was one critical incident after another in the four years he was working at Parramatta Gaol, in fact there were seven murders that occurred at Parramatta Gaol during that time, in addition to other deaths in custody, plus a major riot.   

Mr Kay seemed to be caught up in all of the seven murders in one way or another, some to a lesser degree than others, however to be involved in seven murders, regardless of the fact that he was working in an occupation where it was not uncommon for such tragic episodes to occur, there were so many, that the intricate details of each murder became blurred between one and the next.  Even given the environment in which he was working, it was a substantial series of horrific incidents for such a young officer to deal with. I would compare it to the equivalent of a highway patrol policeman attending fatal car accidents where they just seem to keep occurring without any respite for the police officers’ attending who having to deal with the continual trauma of witnessing regular carnage and death. 

Mr Kay told me, “I remember one, I cannot remember his name, but I remember his face and the blood.  I was in the cell with two ambulance officers who were working on the inmate.  Blood seemed to be coming from numerous holes all over him; they put a set of blow up trousers on him to try to force some blood back to where it was needed most.  Arthur Barton was the Superintendent at the time”.  (Mr Barton was a tallish man with red hair and very fair completion). “He had a stutter problem; he stood at the door and looked at all the blood, and obviously thinking, ‘not another one’, as this was about murder number six or seven, he said, and I remember it as if it was yesterday, stuttering, ‘I hope he doesn’t ffffffffffffucking die!’  Clearly he was thinking he was going to have to do more reports.  I looked up at him and thought to myself, ‘sorry sir, but he is already dead’.  The inmate had his eyes rolled back in his head and had the death shakes, blood was nearly the thickness of the soles of my shoes all over the floor.  I will never forget it.  Clearly he was never going to make it.    Next the prison doctor arrived, Dr Mutton. The ambulance officers looked up as if expecting some wonderful help and the good old doc just stood there and said, ‘Oh my fucking God’.  The ambulance officers went back to work on him, albeit in vain”.

To read more about Michael Kay’s horrific thirty year career in New South Wales Prisons, read my latest eBook Australia’s Best Prison Stories available on Amazon.

PARKLEA PRISON RIOTS 1987 & 1990

Two Riots at Parklea Prison
There were two major riots at Parklea Prison during the time Mr Michael Kay worked there. The first was 13th December 1987 and the second 23rd September 1990.   Prison riots are horrible and extremely dangerous situations to be in.  They normally involve prisoners partaking in alcohol and or drugs and as a result, they are unpredictable and do not consider the consequences of their actions.

During the first riot it seems four prisoners were drunk on a gaol brew, made mainly from fruit and sugar, thanks to the Nagel Royal Commission’s introduction of additional quantities of these rations for all prisoners, and it spread rapidly from there. On seeing five prisoners bash Prison Officer Christopher Holmes to the ground, Prison Officer Robert Jarvis rushed to his fellow officer’s aid.  He was struck several times on the head and lay on the ground unconscious. Once he had regained consciousness, his first memory was being surrounded by 15 other prison officers, all of whom had barricaded themselves in a wing.

There were now 40 or 50 prisoners involved, armed with iron bars, threatening to kill these brave officers who feared for their lives, not surprisingly all believing they would be killed as they were seriously outnumbered by the rampaging prisoners. Being unarmed they were unable to effectively defend themselves. They believed they were destined to die.  A large number of prison officer’s sustained injuries during this horrendous critical incident.

In addition to the officers barricaded in a wing, there were two further officers who were trapped in the office on 3 Wing bottom landing; one was First Class Prison Officer Ian Hall whom I knew from my days working at Parklea Prison, and the other was a relatively junior officer.  It must have been mortifying for these two officers realising that the crims had smashed the glass windows that had surrounded the office. They only had bars that barely covered the windows to protect them from being taken hostage by the erupting prisoners.  Without warning, a prisoner walked into the kitchen directly behind and next to the office, in full view of Mr Hall and his partner.  The crim placed oil and water on the stove to boil in readiness to tip over these defenceless officers holed up in the wing.

The rampaging rioting prisoners caused three million dollars worth of damage at the 

New South Wales tax payers’ expense

To read more about these horrific prison riots and to view more unpublished photographs, read my latest eBook, Australia’s Best Prison Stories, available on Amazon.

This I believe.
Peter T Egge

PARKLEA PRISON – A COMPLETE SHAMBLES

Mr Severin must resign or be sacked

The following is an extract I have lifted directly from the internet via Google.

An investigation is being conducted after a prisoner at the Parklea Correctional Centre, in Sydney's north-west, uploaded a video to YouTube showing him in possession of a knife, a "slasher" and the drug ice.

The man filming the video claims that contraband is being brought into the jail by security guards in exchange for money.

"On a day-to-day basis this place is a dead-set joke, it's a dead-set joke," the inmate says.

"Right now, I've got a mobile phone. Why have I got a mobile phone?  Because screws are bringing mobile phones into the jail for money”.

He then shows the camera, a knife, a "slasher" and a part of a TV that could "rip skin".

"Why am I carrying around a knife like that?  Why does that need to be in my hand at this point in time?" he says.

"Why have I got a slasher?  Why do I need to slash people?"

PHOTO: The man demonstrated the strength of the "slasher" by running it along the cell wall. (YouTube)

He then uses the implement to hack into a wall and says: "That's just an example of what it can do to your throat."

Finally, he holds up a clear bag which he says contains the drug “ice”.

"Why have I got it? Because I can."

The man then declares that the "jail is ruining lives and killing the young people".

He points to another inmate and says: "This man, 50 years of jail, why hasn't the system fixed him?"

"Why? ‘Cause the system has never had a mobile phone broadcast live in every correctional centre."

A spokeswoman from Corrective Services NSW said the incident was being viewed as a "very serious breach of security".

A multi-team investigation has commenced, she said, and CSNSW will meet on Monday with the operator of Parklea Correctional Group, GEO Group.

On Saturday a targeted search operation with 40 staff and nine detection dogs found four mobile phones and chargers, steroid tablets and a number of other contraband items at the jail.

"CSNSW takes a zero-tolerance approach and uses a range of methods to track down and confiscate contraband," the spokeswoman said.

"Inmates go to extraordinary lengths to introduce contraband. Methods include internal secretion, visitor smuggling and lobbing of packages over perimeter fences.

"Any suggestions that contraband is introduced by staff are immediately investigated."

NSW Corrective Services Assistant Commissioner Mark Wilson said they are satisfied the video was shot within the prison but any allegations regarding security personnel need to be investigated.

PHOTO: The man purporting to be a prisoner said he had ice "because I can". (YouTube)

My thoughts:

Of course Mr Severin reacted and took corrective action but only following his attention was drawn to the YouTube downloaded by the prisoner whose voice features in the article. It was not Mr Severin or his ineffective, mal-practicing administration that discovered the shoddy work being carried out by the private contractor GEO Group.  This whole sorry episode has only come to light because a lone prisoner had the foresight and courage to stand up and show the world what a disgrace the NSW prison system has become.   A Royal Commission is desperately needed to sort out the extensive problems caused by this very poorly run prison system.

It is, in my opinion, a complete failure, run by a horde of “do gooder’s”.  This must be turned around, in particular when we have a “lone wolf” prisoner screaming for someone to help fix the shambles the NSW prison system has become under the “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil” administration and responsibility of the dud Commissioner Mr Severin.   In short, Mr Severin is a “soft cock” who must be stood down.

This I believe

Peter T Egge

CHARLIE GEDDES

I had lunch with Charlie Geddes last week at the Air Force Club.  It was great to see him and catch up on old times.

You can read all about Charlie Geddes’ exploits at the Cessnock Corrective Centre in my latest eBook Australia’s Best Prison Stories, available from Amazon.

RIOT- CENTRAL INDUSTRIAL PRISON (CIP) LONG BAY 22nd AUGUST 1978

Generally speaking there are three ingredients to all riots, Prison Officers working excessive overtime, the prisoner population being overcrowded and hot weather. This riot was to be no different.   The Prison population and to some extent the Prison Officers themselves, were becoming anxious following the release of the Nagel Royal Commission  into New South Wales Prisons report in April, just four months earlier. 

The Prison System had been in turmoil from early 1974.  There had been riots at Long Bay, Parramatta, Maitland and Goulburn Gaols.   In addition Bathurst Gaol had been burnt to the ground in February 1974 which caused the formation of the Royal Commission. 

The Executive staff had received information from an informant two days prior, that the crims would riot on 22nd of August.  Stan Morgan was the Acting Superintendent on that day and his Deputy Superintendent was Frank “Karate Jack” Hutchen.  Mr Morgan was a lovely man but lacked the fortitude to make a decision.   He had spent well over 20 years driving a truck at Parramatta Gaol and badly lacked Gaol experience and as a result lacked the ability to make those difficult and sometimes challenging decisions that Superintendents of Maximum Security Gaols are required to make.  

Mr Hutchen had placed two Officers above the CIP gate.   He had fully armed and double maned the Towers for enhanced security and control in case of a riot as well as preventing an escape should the riot be a ploy to distract Prison staff away from a possible escape exit, as well as the protection of the Officers.  He had also put into place an escape plan for the Officers to evacuate the Gaol safely which included leaving some vital gates unlocked to allow quick access.

At 11.04 hours on 22nd August 1978 the CIP erupted.   The Prison Officers ran for their lives as the prisoners took control of the inside of the CIP.  The noise was deafening as several crims climbed onto the Wing rooves, with most remaining on the ground lighting small fires and arming themselves with iron bars, pieces of wood, in fact anything they could get their hands on.  The do-gooders had put brick flower beds in front of 3 and 4 Wings to ensure the crims had plenty on ammunition to throw at the Officers.

About 80 Officers had gathered outside the CIP gate all geared up in riot gear, with batons, shields, gas masks and overalls if you could get a pair.  The Officers were lined up in four rows.  The tension was enormous.  The Officers simply wanted to retake the Gaol and put it under the control of the Prison administration once more.  To do that someone had to give the order.

To find out more about this true and devastating riot, read my eBook Cutting the Bars – Volume 1, available on Amazon.

The cleanup, the day after the riot in the Central Industrial Prison

Frank Hutchen in the foreground, extreme right

JOHN DOYLE – RIP

I was saddened to read in my recent copy of the Public Service Association of New South Wales gazette “Red Tape” that John Doyle had passed away at home on Saturday 1st April 2017 at the very young age of 67.

I first met John long before I became a Prison Officer in 1971.   In the late 60s I was playing drums in a band called the “Sheer Delight” around the Newcastle/Williamtown/Nelsons Bay area.  We had a large following of local young people at the time and John was one of them.  He told me years later that he had become a musician and had a band of his own purely because he was inspired by my band.  He also specifically enjoyed my band’s rendition of the old Shadows classic “Apache”.

John followed me into the prisons in January 1973, some 20 months after me.  John was a very staunch and loyal Prison Officer with a great grasp on summing up and dealing with difficult situations.  He led by example.  He showed genuine concern for the welfare and conditions of his fellow Prison Officers.  He became an active Union member and he was at one stage the Chairman of the POVB (Prison Officers’ Vocational Branch).

John never indicated to me whether I was an influence on him becoming a Prison Officer or not.  I would like to think that I did factor into his decision.

Last time I saw John was at the court case for Geoff Pearce and we had a long and meaningful discussion there.

You can read about Geoff Pearce’s horrific case in my latest book, “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”, available from Amazon.

John reached the exalted rank of Deputy Superintendent.  To put in more simple words, he was just a good, decent, all round person that you would be pleased to call your friend.

My thoughts go to his family and friends at this time.

This I believe.

Peter T. Egge

Christopher Lorenzo – Woodham’s dog!

In the early 1980s, Ron (Rotten Ron) Woodham was promoted to Superintendent of Internal Investigations of the NSW Department of Corrective Services, a powerful position that could well be said, he created for himself.

During his period of influence as the Superintendent of the Internal Investigations Unit, he gathered a large pack of “dogs” (prisoner informants), as a so called source of information.  Christopher Lorenzo was one of Woodhan’s pack leaders.

During the 1970s, most Prison Officers gleaned information from prisoners from time to time.  We all kept the identity of the informant secret.  There were many reasons for prisoners to pass on information, mostly for revenge, or another prisoner trying to muscle in on their area, eg one prisoner may be trying to overthrow the bookmaker in the prison wing.  Regardless, there was no direct reward for passing the information on to the prison authorities and the identities were never disclosed, a fact that Woodham was less careful with, often placing his “dog” (informant) in danger.

Woodham’s dogs however were different.  For the best part, they were all heroin addicts.  They would sell their own Grandmother’s soul for a benefit to themselves.   You don’t have to go far to see the paybacks that were given to the prisoners in Woodham’s “dog kennel”.   I would suggest that you take the time to read the ICAC Report on Investigation into the Use of Informers, Volume 1 and 2, January 1993, to realise how these prisoners were manipulated or they manipulated the system, to gain a vast array of privileges ranging from conjugal visits to early release in return for giving evidence against fellow prisoners and also Prison Officers.

Of course this evidence was extremely dubious, dangerous and unsafe at law.  The ICAC Report clearly found that the practice was unacceptable and recommended its immediate discontinuation.

Christopher Lorenzo was placed on protection at Berrima Gaol in 1987.  Protection prisoners are as a general rule hated by all other prisoners and most Prison Officers.

Whilst Lorenzo was at Berrima Gaol, I observed his girlfriend arguing with Andrew Tregurtha, a prisoner serving a life sentence for the insidious murders of Greek Consulate, Constantine Giannaris and school teacher Peter Parkes.  This argument took place between the bars at the visiting section and the Gaol proper.  Tregurtha was locked up by Assistant Superintendent Gardener immediately following the argument with Lorenzo’s girlfriend, not because of the argument but rather at Tregurtha’s own request.

The following morning sadly, Andrew Tregurtha, at that time only 22 years of age, was found hung in his cell by a young Prison Officer.  I took the weight and held Tregurtha while Alan Pitt cut the cord from above his head and we both placed him on his bed for the Police.  It was obvious to me that he had been dead for several hours, possibly not long after he had been locked in his cell after the argument with Lorenzo’s girlfriend, a pertinent point that was never investigated by the Police or the sitting Coroner.

Following his release, Lorenzo was later charged with murder and sentenced accordingly.  It was not uncommon for Woodham’s “dogs” to continue on their careers as criminals.  In Woodham’s case, the old adage applies, “If you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas”!

I have been informed that Lorenzo died at the Prince of Wales Hospital on 9th January 2011.  I can assure you that the only people grieving over his death would be his immediate family.

You can read more about my dealings with Christopher Lorenzo in my best selling eBook, “It’s All in the Fall”, available through Amazon.

This I believe.
Peter Egge

IAN JOHN STEELE.

I noticed in the news this week that Ian John Steele has been extradited from England back to New South Wales to face some very serious charges, including an amazing escape from Long Bay Gaol.  

Steele, also known as “Peter Rabbit” by his criminal cohorts, is a very dangerous and cunning criminal.  He escaped from the Long Bay Prison Complex and made his way to England where he continued his violent criminal activities.

In 1990 he received a life sentence for murder plus 21 years for 15 armed robberies.  He was extradited last week after serving 27 years in maximum security in Her Majesty’s Gaol in England.  

The following is an extract from my latest book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”.

Prison Officer Paul Lefoe
From day one I knew Paul Lefoe was going to be a well above average prison officer.  In the 1970s it was rare for a prison officer to have carried on with his school education past the age of 15. The educational requirement for entry into the Department of Corrective Services was the School Certificate or the previous equivalent being the Intermediate Certificate, or in some cases even less depending on the circumstances.  Paul had completed his School Certificate in 1973 and his Higher School Certificate in 1975 at Granville South High School.  In my opinion, those extra two years at high school make a great deal of difference to an individual’s formal education. Following the completion of his schooling, he embarked on a career in customer service and sales, ultimately becoming a branch manager of a major company.

On 6th August 1979 Mr Lefoe commenced duty as a Probationary Prison Officer.   He was a very fast learner and earned the trust and respect of his senior officers.

About 11.00 hours on 28th November 1982, four very dangerous prisoners attempted to escape the Long Bay Prison complex. They were led by Gregory Norman McHardie, (the Woolworth’s bomber), and included Ian John Steele, Wayne Garry Le Petit and Barry Charles King.  They had plaited sheets together to use as a rope and had used a weighted pillow case to throw over the wall.

As the four prisoners were attempting their desperate endeavours to escape, they were sighted by Prison Officer Terence Sullivan who was doing tower duty and he fired a warning shot and shouted to the prisoners, “Drop them or I’ll put one through you”.  At the same time Mr Lefoe had witnessed the incident unfold and quickly ran to block the access of the prisoners back into the main part of the gaol.

As the would be escapees approached a chain wire fence and gate, Mr Lefoe, without any thought to self-preservation and with his mind totally fixed on the job at hand, tried desperately to put the lock onto the gate.  McHardie had wrapped his arm around the bolt preventing Mr Lefoe from securing the lock in place.  An equal opponent to the task, Mr Lefoe gripped the locking device effectively preventing the prisoner’s entry.   Steele began to abuse him and threatened his life while at the same time he picked up a long broom handle and began to savagely strike Mr Lefoe through the wire in a vain effort for him to loosen his grip. It was McHardie who was the first to let go allowing Mr Lefoe to place the lock on the gate as other officers started to arrive and subdue the four prisoners.

Mr Lefoe had held on valiantly while receiving a broken rib and several other injuries. He proved he was a razor in battle and an officer who could be relied upon in the most trying of conditions while in the face of certain danger.

He was recognised for his bravery and awarded “The Minister’s Citation for Bravery”. The front of the Citation reads, “For distinguished service to the people of New South Wales, Prison Officer Paul Lefoe in recognition of the bravery displayed in preventing the escape of dangerous prisoners, Malabar, 28th November 1982”.

Ian John Steele also known as “Peter Rabbit” was charged with the added charge of assaulting Mr Lefoe in addition to the attempted escape charges that all four prisoners had to answer.  Steele was a very bad man.  He was a convicted robber and a kidnapper.  

He escaped a few months later on 17th February 1983 from Darlinghurst Court.  He found his way to Perth Western Australia where he carried out at least four robberies before fleeing to Victoria.  It was in Melbourne in 1984 that he was shot by “Super Cop” Detective Jimmy Venn in Swanston Street.  Steel had fired a sawn off shot gun at Detective Venn and his partner Detective Paul “Fish” Mullett.

Super Cop Venn returned fire hitting Steele in the head and shoulders however Steele somehow survived.  He received a sentence of 17 years with a 13 year non-parole period.   After secretly shaving off his beard, he escaped from Long Bay Gaol by boldly wearing a prison officer’s hat and simply walked straight out of the gaol’s main gate on 17th January 1986.


To find out more about Ian John Steele, alias “Peter Rabbit”, you can purchase my book, Australia’s Best Prison Stories through Amazon.

Peter Egge

GUIDER MUST NOT BE RELEASED

The following is a plea from Chantelle, Michael Guider’s last victim that you can find on change.org:

I’ve stayed silent until now. I needed to rebuild my life. But I can’t sit back and let the monster who drugged and sexually assaulted me as a child be released on parole before completing his jail sentence, in a few short weeks.

I was only 6 when a stranger gave me a bottle of Coca-Cola at my friends house. He was supposed to be our babysitter, it was supposed to be a fun filled weekend.

It turned out to be anything but, the next couple of days were a horrific nightmare, the whole time Guider had us he made sure we were drugged up enough to not put up a fight. Once drugged he would sexually assault us and photograph his disgusting actions.

I was the last of Michael Guider’s 11 victims before he was thrown into jail – guilty of a disgusting 75 child sex crimes and the high profile death of Bondi schoolgirl Samantha Knight.

I can’t bear the thought of another child’s innocence taken away by this notorious paedophile killer. He’s still got two years of his 17 year sentence left – but he’ll be released on parole at the end of this month unless we fight back.

I am fighting on behalf of all Michael Guider’s victims. I am petitioning the NSW Attorney General and the Parole Authority to urgently stop this man from being released until his sentence is complete. Guider’s shown no remorse for his victims – some of them are now dead, but I’m still here, and I am ready to fight.

* * * *

There seems to be no end to the release of human vermin such as the likes of Michael Guider.   You can read many stories of similar disgust in my latest book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”.

It is up to us, the irate public, to stand up to the courts and Prison authorities against the release of Guider and his ilk.  I urge all readers to give serious consideration to signing the petition on change.org set up by Chantelle to the Attorney General Mark Speakman regarding this matter.  This man has sexually assaulted 11 children and accumulated 75 sex crimes against these innocent victims, ruining their lives for ever, and in the case of Samantha Knight, has taken her life.   Regardless of his age or any contrition he may have, he must remain in Gaol for the rest of his life.  I applaud Chantelle for taking such a brave and courageous stance in bringing this appalling injustice to the attention of the public.  If it were left to the authorities, this man will be released and on the streets again to prey on unsuspecting innocent children, sooner rather than later.


This I believe.

Peter T Egge

“2 TOWER HAD TO SHOOT THE SEAGULL DOWN TO GET THE CRIM’S COCK BACK”!

Prison officers were never shy when it came to telling a good story nor would they spoil a good story by not enhancing the truth just a little.  It was 1981 when I was sitting in my office dealing with the pile of paper work in front of me when the phone rang. “9 Wing, Egge speaking” I said.  “Hey Peter did you hear the shots” one of my close mates in the CIP bellowed very excitedly down the line.  I was very much in the dark and so I was keen to know what he was talking about.  I was to be informed that, “A crim in 4 Wing walked out of the wing after let go and cut his cock off with a knife, a seagull swooped on his cock and started to fly off with it. The officer in 2 Tower had to shoot the seagull down to get the crim’s cock back so the doctor could sew it back on”.

By now I was laughing so hard that I almost fell off my chair.  I had tears of laughter rolling down my face.  When I calmed down he told me what really happened.

To find out what really happened in this most tragic event, read my latest book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”, available from this website or through Amazon.

This I believe.

Peter T Egge

FIRST CLASS PRISON OFFICER TIMOTHY DAVID BURT ESCAPE FROM PARKLEA PRISON

Timothy David Burt became a Probationary Prison Officer in 1985.   Through time and diligent service he had made his way through the ranks to the substantive position of Senior Prison Officer, and was acting up to the position of Assistant Superintendent at Parklea Prison.   It seems somewhere around 1997 he accepted a voluntary redundancy package, just more wasted money by the government to my way of thinking.

Mr Burt gained employment with the Queensland Corrective Services.  In September 2000 he returned to NSW and again sought employment with the NSW Department of Corrective Services and was accepted with open arms, proving my point about wasting our taxes on redundancy packages.  In February 2001 Mr Burt returned to Parklea Prison as a First Class Prison Officer.

On the 27th December 2001 he was rostered as compound 1 Officer.  Part of his duties was to relieve the officer in the control room for a break.  In this case he relieved Correctional Officer Trevor Burke at about 10.20 hours.  Senior Correctional Officer James “Jim” Linos was the officer in charge.  I remember Mr Linos well from my time at Parklea Prison.

At about 10.30 hours or shortly thereafter, two prisoners escaped over the wall in the activities/oval of the prison.  They were Silva and McMillan and one prisoner failed the fitness test as he was unable to pull himself over the formidable wall of the oval in Parklea Prison, his name was Cooper.   As can only be expected, the “suits” within the Department had to head hunt someone to blame at the lowest level possible in order to protect their mates a little higher up the promotional ladder.

The fiasco that followed investigating the escape was nothing short of shameful and disgraceful behaviour on behalf of the New South Wales Department of Corrective Services at the time, in particular the way they wasted valuable resources in pursuing Mr. Linos and Mr. Burt.

To find out more about this story and others, read my book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”.

This I believe.
Peter T Egge

PRISON OFFICER GERRY HULBERT – A CALL TO THE GATE

“Gerry Hulbert was an English migrant who was a nice enough bloke and a lot older than me.   I’d like to be very clear on this matter so as not to unduly offend anyone.  As a general rule I like English migrants.  My maternal great grandfather, George Sansom, migrated from our mother England, so of course I like English migrants.  


The English have so many different sounding accents I can’t always distinguish between one from another and quite often there are dramatic changes in accents from one village to the next, often just a few kilometres apart down the motorway.   Most English accents are very pleasant to listen to, but not Gerry Hulbert.  His accent was harsh and grinding on my nerves.  Put simply I could not stand listening to the man talk.

In 1982 I was a Senior Prison Officer in the Metropolitan Reception Prison at Long Bay.  On this particular day I was rostered Night Senior in charge of the prison on the “B” watch, from 00.01 until 08.00 hours (night work).

Like most Night Seniors it was my habit to report for duty at about 22.30 hours for a midnight start.  That allowed me ample time to catch up with the day’s events, do a proper “handover” and enjoy a cup of tea with the “C” Watch Senior (16.00 to 23.59 hours).   It also allowed me time to work out my placements of officers, (what posts I wanted to place them on).   I know it sounds discriminatory in 2017, but it was not the case in 1982.   Purely for the reason I could not stand the grating sound of Mr Hulbert’s voice, I placed him in the main gate.  The main gate normally went to the most senior officer of “prison officer” rank so he was happy and so was I.

Mr Hulbert was known to like a drink or three, so on his arrival I took a mental note that he showed no signs of being effected by alcohol, at least anytime close to reporting for duty.   Mr Hulbert made his way to the gate and relieved the officer from the “C” watch.

I was still talking to the “C” Watch Senior when I received a phone call from Mr Hulbert who said, “Mr Egge can you come down here to the gate please, I have an officer here who has reported for duty in an unfit state”.   I looked at the “C” Watch Senior and asked him if he would mind waiting for me to take over for a couple of minutes until I sorted out whatever the problem was.   On my way to the gate, which was only a matter of 100 metres or less, I thought it rather interesting that it was Mr Hulbert reporting the officer, knowing how much he loved a drink.”  

To read more of the unbelievable traumatic event that confronted me when I attended the main gate of the MRP, read my book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories”, available from this website or Amazon.

This I believe
Peter T Egge

ERIC THOMAS TURNER – QUADRUPLE KILLER

“When I became a probationary prison officer in 1971 I was amazed at the very generous uniform issue, there seemed to be no end to it.  We were each given a large cardboard box that was overflowing with uniform; tunic, shirts, trousers, socks, ties, cap, rain coat, over coat, belt, key lanyard, two post duty books, one for the CIP and the other for the MRP, and the most astounding one of all was two pairs of boots.  All my working life at that young age, seven years of working, I had only ever had one pair of shoes to go to work in of which I had to buy and pay for myself.  It didn’t stop there. I was also entitled to have two pairs of my boots resoled and healed per year by the prisoners in the boot shop in the CIP at Long Bay, previously known as the State Penitentiary.  The whole uniform issue was automatically handed to me every 12 months.

The boots were made in the early 1970s at H M Gaol Bathurst, H M Gaol Parramatta or the CIP, they were very nice comfortable boots laced up and covering up to just over my ankles.  In general terms the boots were of a high quality and I could get a good shine on them.  I never worked in the boot shop, yet in 1973 I had noticed a new prisoner was working in there. He had a lifer’s number on his jacket and was housed in 4 Wing. I observed this prisoner for some time and observed that most officers and prisoners seemed to know him. He gave me the impression he must have been transferred to the CIP from another gaol.  He was quite by nature as he went about his business around the gaol. His name was Eric Thomas Turner. I had simply thought he must have murdered someone only because of his life sentence.  It was always my policy not to enquire into the prisoners criminal offences, it was less emotional and I could be more professional in carrying out my duties that way.

It was only recently that I decided to research Turner as a subject piece for this book that I realised this man cheated the hangman’s noose in 1948. He was also an excellent example of why murderers should be sentenced to life imprisonment and never be released.”

Prison Officers all around the world have to deal with prisoners like Turner and his ilk on a daily basis.  To read more about this quadruple murderer, you can read my latest book “Australia’s Best Prison Stories” available from this website or Amazon.

This I believe.

Peter T Egge