- Nick Paltos
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Nicholas George Paltos (c 1940 - 26 December 2003) was an Australian Doctor and convicted criminal.
Contents
Early life
Paltos was born "Nicholas George Paltos"[1] (or possibly "Nicholas Johns Paltos"[2] ) in 1940[3] or 1941[1] on the small Greek island of Kastelorizon[1] The youngest of ten children, his family migrated from Greece to Melbourne, Australia in 1947.[3] After the death of his mother in 1949, his family moved to Sydney, Australia in 1955,[3] where he first became acquainted with gambling, which was to be his downfall.[1]
Paltos attended school till he was 13 when he left and worked at a chrome metal factory. In 1955, he moved with his father to Sydney where he worked as an apprentice in a Sydenham metal factory, completing a diploma course in electroplating.
In that period, Paltos came into contact with the world of illegal gaming in Sydney, which was thriving, and took a liking to it. He met one of the denizens of that world, Joe Taylor, who is understood to have encouraged Paltos to become better qualified.
Paltos enrolled at Sydney Technical College in 1959 and took two years to complete his matriculation. He won a Commonwealth Scholarship and admission to medicine at the University of NSW in 1962. He studied and worked part-time as a taxi driver and salesman. He also met his future wife, Marie Kratzis, whom he married in January 1967. He completed his studies in 1968 and joined the staff of Sydney Hospital. A year later he was appointed to the emergency and casualty department.
Sadly for Paltos, his interest in gaming and gambling did not abate. He frequented illegal gaming venues, in particular the Goulburn Club, and racecourses. He got to know various people who moved in that world, including Graham "Croc" Palmer. On his later account, he met George Freeman as a doctor and became friends with him. In a 1977 report on Freeman by the NSW Crime Intelligence Unit, Paltos got a mention.
In 1978, Paltos took up private practice in Riley Street, Woolloomooloo. His patients soon included many high-flyers, such as former NSW Supreme Court chief justice Sir Laurence Street, media tycoon Kerry Packer and broadcaster John Laws. He warned ex-Goon Harry Secombe that if he did not lose some of his 129 kilograms, he would die. Secombe took that advice and credited Paltos with saving his life.
The father of two children, living in a two-storey mansion, Gwandalan, in Victoria Road, Bellevue Hill, Paltos should have been set. But he was in fact losing control. His other patients were a problem, people like gangsters Danny Chubb and Robert "Aussie Bob" Trimbole. He was forming unsavoury associations with them at a time he was becoming increasingly desperate for money, so much so that in 1982 he borrowed $300,000 from the family company of a solicitor, Ross Karp
Medical practice
Paltos won a scholarship to study Medicine at the University of New South Wales in 1962.[1] After completing studies, he commenced work at the Sydney Hospital in 1969, and in 1978 took up private practice with rooms in Woolloomooloo[1]
First conviction
In 1986, Paltos pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to import 5.5 tonnes of hashish into Australia.[3][4]
Second conviction
In 1990, Paltos was convicted on charges of conspiring to pervert the course of justice, along with a disgraced police detective, for using bank accounts under false names to hide improperly gotten money.[3][5]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Doc descended into underworld" (in English). Sydney Morning Herald. 2004-01-01. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/31/1072546587022.html. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ "R v Rogerson [1992 HCA 25; (1992) 174 CLR 268; (1992) 60 A Crim R 429 (17 June 1992)"] (in English). Australasian Legal Information Institute. 1992-06-17. http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/sinodisp/au/cases/cth/HCA/1992/25.html?query=%22John%20Paltos%22#disp1. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ a b c d e Cornford, Philip (2004-01-01). "God 'will forgive' the doctor turned crim" (in English). Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/31/1072546587022.html. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ "RESEARCH REPORT ON TRENDS IN POLICE CORRUPTION" (in English). Parliament of New South Wales. 2002-12-01. http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/Committee.nsf/0/a467316feb212c4cca256cfb0013c1d2/$FILE/Research%20Report%20on%20Trends%20in%20Police%20Corruption.PDF. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
- ^ "ROYAL COMMISSION INTO THE NEW SOUTH WALES POLICE SERVICE" (in English). Wood Royal Commission. 1997-05-01. http://www.pic.nsw.gov.au/files/reports/VOLUME1.pdf. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
Categories:- 1940 births
- 2003 deaths
- Australian drug traffickers
- Australian medical doctors
- Australian people of Greek descent
- University of New South Wales alumni
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