George Freeman (bookmaker)
| George Freeman | |
|---|---|
George Freeman
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| Born |
George David Freeman 22 January 1935 Annandale, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 20 March 1990 (aged 55) Sydney |
| Occupation | Bookmaker |
| Criminal charge | SP bookmaking |
| Spouse(s) | Marcia Bedford (1963-1977); Georgina McLaughlin (1981 - his death) |
| Children | 6, 5 sons & 1 daughter |
| Parent(s) | William David Freeman Rita Eileen Freeman nee Cooke. |
| Conviction(s) | $5000 fine |
George David Freeman (22 January 1935 – 20 March 1990) was a Sydney organised crime figure and illegal casino operator. He was linked to the Sydney drug trade during the 1970s and '80s, was named in several Royal Commissions into organised crime and had links with American crime figures. Freeman served several prison terms for theft between 1951 and 1968 but was never brought to trial for any of his later alleged crimes, receiving only monetary fines for SP bookmaking in the mid-1980s. He survived a murder attempt in 1979, was married twice, and died in 1990 of asthma.
The youngest of three children, Freeman was born in the Sydney suburb of Annandale on 22 January 1935 to William David Freeman and Rita Eileen Freeman (née Cooke). His parents were married at Five Dock, New South Wales in 1931 and were divorced in 1946. After his father abandoned the family and his stepfather died, Freeman turned to crime and was arrested in 1947 for theft. He served two years' probation and left school at 14 to work as a stable hand and earned money hustling. George Freeman stated in his 1988 autobiography, that his boyhood hero was the notorious Australian criminal Darcy Dugan.
In 1951 he began a sentence for various theft offences, serving two years originally at the Mount Penang Training School near Gosford and later at Tamworth Boys' Home. He also served time in Parramatta Gaol for stealing. On 5 February 1963 he married Marcia Bedford in Sydney.
After time in Fremantle Prison in 1968, he travelled to the United States on a false passport and met crime figure Joe Testa.
During the 1970s and '80s, George Freeman was involved in the horse racing industry, primarily as a bookmaker. He was first named in a Royal Commission in 1973 in the Moffit Inquiry into organised crime in Sydney's clubs, though Freeman denied involvement. He was later alleged to be part of a plot to bribe State politicians who were planning to set up a casino regulatory board in a bid to curb illegal gambling.
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