One of Australia's most notorious gangsters, Tony Mokbel, has been released after prosecutors dropped plans for a retrial on drug trafficking charges. The decision, announced on Friday by the Victorian Office of Public Prosecutions, cited Mokbel's age, health, and time already served.
Mokbel, 60, was a key figure in Melbourne's gangland war and was jailed for 30 years in 2012 for masterminding an elaborate drug syndicate. He spent about 18 years behind bars before being granted bail last April, after a court ruled he had a strong chance of overturning his convictions.
The convictions were called into question due to the actions of his former lawyer, Nicola Gobbo, who was secretly feeding information to police while representing clients. A 2020 royal commission found Gobbo's double life constituted 'fundamental and appalling breaches' of her obligations as counsel.
Mokbel was acquitted of one charge, and prosecutors considered a retrial over allegations he tried to import MDMA in 2005. However, they decided not to proceed, stating the decision followed 'careful consideration of all aspects of the matter'.
'It feels really nice, and life goes on,' Mokbel told media outside a Melbourne courthouse, adding he was keen to travel abroad. His gang, known as the Company, was linked to dozens of deaths during Melbourne's gangland war, later depicted in the TV series Underbelly.
