Series: The Great Bookie Robbery Trilogy

Book One: High Stakes – The Heist and the Gamblers’ Pact

Melbourne, 1976. A crew of precision-minded criminals walks into the fortified Victoria Club and disappears with millions in cash. No weapons. No alarms. No arrests. What they pulled off would go down as one of the boldest and most mysterious heists in Australian history. But this story isn’t just about the robbery—it’s about the silence that followed… and the cost of keeping it.

High Stakes is the gripping true story behind the Great Bookie Robbery, brought to life with cinematic storytelling and investigative depth. At the center is Ray “Chuck” Bennett—a brilliant strategist who handpicks a team not just for their skills, but for their ability to stay quiet. What unfolds is a masterclass in planning: months of surveillance, rehearsals, false identities, and diversion tactics. But even perfect plans have cracks.

As pressure mounts and the money disappears, trust begins to fray. Quiet paranoia sets in. A missing share. A late meeting. A subtle glance that lasts too long. And through it all, Melbourne itself watches—alive with media frenzy, criminal rivalries, and power struggles boiling just beneath the surface.

This isn’t just a heist story. It’s a psychological unraveling, a cultural postmortem, and a human drama disguised as criminal strategy. From the mind behind the crime to the silence that followed, High Stakes takes you deep into the world of calculated risk, fragile alliances, and the myth of the perfect crime.

What happens when everything goes right… and still tears itself apart?

A compelling blend of true crime, psychological tension, and narrative depth, High Stakes explores the cost of silence, the fragility of trust, and the myth of control. Perfect for listeners who enjoy real stories told with a literary edge, it combines investigative journalism with emotional storytelling to examine what happens when a perfect plan meets imperfect people.