Charles Staunton: 'Everyone Was Doing Something Illegal!'

He’s Been A Cop, Criminal Fixer – And Prisoner

- Emma Babbington

Former policeman and one-time ‘Mr Fix It’ for some of Kings Cross’ most notorious identities, Charles Staunton has lived life on both sides of the law.

“I enjoyed being a policeman and thought I was going to save the world,” Charles, 60, tells New Idea. “It was exciting. But it was also disappointing because they seemed to get away with everything.

“There was a hard-drinking culture; the law didn’t really seem to apply to the police – it applied to everyone else.” Charles says the police were “a hassle to most of the establishments”.

“If you were in Kings Cross, everyone was doing something illegal, whether it was not paying your taxes, or because the licensing laws forced you to do something illegal or you’d never sell a drink,” he says.

“I knew where the police cheated. I knew where the observation squad said they saw something when it was impossible.”

After leaving the NSW police in the late ’80s and working as a doorman and host in various Kings Cross clubs, Charles used his understanding of both sides of the law to build a private investigator business.

“Every business in Kings Cross sold capsules of cocaine,” he says. “It was just the place you went to get them. The leaseholders didn’t really get involved but they got $20,000 a week rent for something that was worth $2000 a week and they didn’t care what was going on.