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Dig - Sirens Are Coming

Dig - Sirens Are Coming

ABC Podcasts

Queensland in the 1950s: god-fearing, morally upstanding, tough on crime. Beneath the surface, a murky world of gambling, drugs and brothels were kept in check by three crooked cops known as The Rat Pack. It was this trio who perfected a corrupt system that would wreak havoc for more than 30 years in the sunshine state. At the core of the Rat Pack's corruption was a routine of bribery and extortion with the city's underground brothels. A small group of sex workers were crucial to maintaining relationships which generated millions of illicit dollars that kept the wheels turning for these crooked cops. The women were forced to cooperate with police, have sex with detectives and toe the line. But eventually, the same women who helped build a criminal empire were the ones to help break it. Meticulously researched, action-packed and rich with never-heard-before tape, host Matthew Condon (Three Crooked Kings, Ghost Gate Road) exposes the decades-long institutional crime and corruption of the Queensland police force through the stories of five courageous sex workers who dared to take them on.

Categories: Education

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There have been some exciting developments since we published Sirens Are Coming, so stay tuned to this feed for further episodes. In the meantime, if you have material or information you believe is relevant to the history of Queensland's police corruption in the sex work industry and beyond, tell us about it by writing to dig@your.abc.net.au