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Filthy Rat: One Man’s Stand Against Police Corruption And Melbourne’s Gangland War
"Criminals began killing each other on the streets in broad daylight and police were being ferried into court charged with allegations of involvement in organised crime. Despite my reservations, I knew I had to do something. I simply resigned myself to the fact that I was a dead man walking."
As Melbourne's gangland war gathered momentum during the late 1990s, another battle was being fought within the police force by one brave cop. Young detective sergeant Simon Illingworth had joined the force to serve the public and make a difference. But soon he discovered the price of standing up against police corruption was isolation and death threats. Watching Melbourne's toughest killers working alongside his own filthy colleagues made him sick to the guts.
A spate of events finally sent him to the point of no return. He was brutally bashed - not by crooks but other policemen from an entrenched corrupt brotherhood. A witness preparing to give court evidence against police was then found dead in an execution-style murder. And an underworld crim with access to Simon Illingworth's address was caught in possession of eight guns, night vision goggles and a silencer.
Fearing for his life, in May 2004 this brave copper quit his job and went public about the crisis facing the police force, in an episode of ABC Television's Australian Story that stopped the nation.
Filthy Rat is a brutally honest and action-packed account of the fight against Melbourne's gangland crooks and the corrupt cops who were in their pockets. Simon Illingworth's decision to speak out would change the face of the Australian justice system forever.
"I am thirty-eight years old and too young to be writing an autobiography. But every time I look in the mirror I am reminded of the seventeen-year war I've waged with the true rats of our society - the corrupt cops and the underworld gangsters."
As Melbourne's gangland war gathered momentum during the late 1990s, another battle was being fought within the police force by one brave cop. Young detective sergeant Simon Illingworth had joined the force to serve the public and make a difference. But soon he discovered the price of standing up against police corruption was isolation and death threats. Watching Melbourne's toughest killers working alongside his own filthy colleagues made him sick to the guts.
A spate of events finally sent him to the point of no return. He was brutally bashed - not by crooks but other policemen from an entrenched corrupt brotherhood. A witness preparing to give court evidence against police was then found dead in an execution-style murder. And an underworld crim with access to Simon Illingworth's address was caught in possession of eight guns, night vision goggles and a silencer.
Fearing for his life, in May 2004 this brave copper quit his job and went public about the crisis facing the police force, in an episode of ABC Television's Australian Story that stopped the nation.
Filthy Rat is a brutally honest and action-packed account of the fight against Melbourne's gangland crooks and the corrupt cops who were in their pockets. Simon Illingworth's decision to speak out would change the face of the Australian justice system forever.
"I am thirty-eight years old and too young to be writing an autobiography. But every time I look in the mirror I am reminded of the seventeen-year war I've waged with the true rats of our society - the corrupt cops and the underworld gangsters."
- GenresNonfiction
259 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 23, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 8, 2012
This is an important book, even if frequently not a well-written one. Illingworth tells his story as a cop defeated by corruption and a police force set up to incorporate it. Reading the book is frustrating, as Illingworth is really just telling a story of his own journey, which skims through events of huge importance to Victorian politics, without ever really stopping to explore them, or frequently, even to explain the whole story.
Snouts in the Trough was, for me, a much better put-together book on Victorian police corruption, filling in many gaps.
Having said that, Illingworth comes out of the book as a good bloke, struggling to deal with a world fundamentally at odds with the values it expouses. At the very least, it serves as a confirmation of the picture painted by outside journalists.
Snouts in the Trough was, for me, a much better put-together book on Victorian police corruption, filling in many gaps.
Having said that, Illingworth comes out of the book as a good bloke, struggling to deal with a world fundamentally at odds with the values it expouses. At the very least, it serves as a confirmation of the picture painted by outside journalists.
February 13, 2024
While the author sometimes comes across as arrogant and a lone crusader, there is no doubting he has done some amazing things. Solid moral compass and incredible dedication to his values. The rest of us could only hope to be as staunch as this guy in the face of adversity. A great read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews