THE LIFE AND CRIMESOF STEPHEN COOKSON

CRIME

Page 22 - Melbourne Observer - Wednesday, February 6, 2013 www.MelbourneObserver.com.au

●●●●● Stephen Cookson in Perth. Photo: 7 News

●●●●● Schoolboy debaters: Ash Long (now Editor of the Melbourne Ob-server), the late Peter Huxley (coach), Terry Bramham (now a solici-tor), and Stephen Cookson in 1973

●●●●● Stephen Cookson, cricketer

■ Straight-laced school teacher Ri-chard Stowell should have seen itcoming when he tried to teach theNicene Creed to 11-year-old ‘Divin-ity’ pupils in 1968.

“Sir, what’s a virgin? And would Ifind one in Reservoir?”

The questioner was StephenRamon Cookson, newly enrolled stu-dent at Ivanhoe Grammar’s JuniorSchool. Fresh from the working-classsuburb of Reservoir, he brought arough-and-tumble approach to hisnew “posh” school.

‘Cooka’s’ questions flustered theJunior Headmaster, even though theschoolboy humour would have goneover the heads of most of the pre-pu-bescent lads.

‘Cooka’ showed no fear, whetherit be in the classroom, as a wicket-keeper in cricket, or as a tough juniorfootballer. Before he became a teen-ager, he became proficient in usingfear against his opponents - whetherthey be teachers or students.

So it came as no surprise to hisIvanhoe school mates from 40 yearsago when news came that his severedhead had been found in a plastic bagat Rottnest Island in Western Aus-tralia.

He was full of contrasts. StephenCookson opted for a life of violencefrom an early age. Many/most of hisclassmates had copped a bashing atsome time early in their associationwith him.

Yet he was Equal Dux in his firstyear at Ivanhoe, winner of the prizesfor Composition, Literature and Sport,and a member of the Chess Club. (Theother Equal Dux was me.)

Clever ... yet some 40 years on,Cookson had served serious jail timein Germany and Western Australia,for serious drug offences.

Also known as ‘Cookie’, he hadbeen described in the press as “thebaddest man in WA racing”, had beenwarned off Perth racecourses, wasreported for bashing racing identities,had been a heroin user, and was aboutto face court for possession of enoughmethylamphetamines with intent tosell or supply. He was said to be in-volved in the Perth brothel scene.

But let’s rewind to 1968.

●●●●● ‘Cooka’, age 11, 1968

●●●●● Stephen Cookson,school footballer, 1973

●●●●● Stephen Cookson,schoolboy swimmer, 1970

Upon his release, he returned towhale-size gambling. He pumped somuch cash through the East PerthTAB that a Federal Police check wasconducted at the branch.

‘Cooka’ was a magnificent story-teller. He told of being a winning trainerof a horse in the Melbourne Cup.

He had defended himself in a HighCourt appeal, albeit unsuccessfully.

Former classmates laugh as theyrecall him delivering an assignment,giving a speech written on a roll oftoilet paper..

He boasted of being a member ofMensa. On the other hand, locals inPerth say he was a character thatrarely showered or changed clothes.

After an argument about owner-ship of a horse, the owner returnedseveral days later to find the horsedead in the yard.

That owner also received a bro-ken nose for his troubles.

Another horse racing identity com-plained about injuries after a Cooksonbashing. ‘Cooka’ replied that the manhad “brittle bones”.

Police say that another person in-volved in similar ‘meth’ drug traffick-ing had also been found dead.

Stephen Cookson was a brilliantly-able man who was “off the hinges”.He charmed us with his words, andterrorised us as a thug. But no-onedeserves to die like this.

Guard: “Mr Cookson will also bean apology for that reunion.”

Whilst in jail in WA, ‘Cooka’ be-came part of some very heavy prisonlife.

His ex-prison colleague Trevor toldme: “Steve Cookson was well fearedin jail and he had good connections inthe drug world,

“He and I nearly came to blowsthough. I didn't like him. They weregetting my allocation of ice cream injail and I was getting none so I tookSteve's.

“He was well pissed off and a del-egation was formed to stop me taking"their" ice cream.

“It was comical but quite serious,these blokes would kill you for an icecream.”

‘Cooka’ reportedly increased hisinterest in the ponies and punting. It isunsure whether he completed his lawstudies at Monash.

Gossip has it that he was involvedwith a hold-up at his Victorian work-place, but staff recognised the famil-iar waddle of the accused.

The need for cash to fund his gam-bling saw Stephen Cookson becomeinvolved in the drug industry.

He was jailed in Germany, andlater Western Australia.

Police sources told me that therewere outstanding warrants in Victoriafor him that would prevent his returnto his home state.

Ahead of our school reunion (1989,I think), I phoned the WA jail where‘Cooka’ was an inmate.

Guard: “Mr Cookson will be anapology. When is your next reunion?”

Me: Five years.

Steve Cookson, to my knowledge,was the eldest child in a family fromReservoir. His father was a plumber,who would often drive his son toschool in a battered old Holden.

Both dad and son had a passion forpunting. By the time he was just a teen-ager, ‘Cooka’ was wagging schooldays to attend midweek race meet-ings at Moonee Valley and Caulfield.He would bet on anything.

Stephen Cookson would quicklyshow that his fists would solve an ar-gument, if reason could not.

In Form 4 (Year 10), we were bothworking on a community serviceproject during a week in the Springschool holidays: painting a pensionerlady’s house in West Heidelberg.

There was an argument aboutsomething incidental, probably paint,so he held me down on the ground,sitting atop me, delivering a round ofdamaging punches to the head. Thatwas 1972, I still reckon I don’t breatheproperly because of that bashing.

But ‘Cooka’ could also be engag-ing. We walked home together thatnight to Reservoir.

School friends remember that at aschool dance featuring flamboyantentertainer Jeff Duff and his groupKush, the school came under assaultby ‘the Heidelberg Boys’. He foughtthem off single-handedly, they recall.

In 1973, Stephen Cookson vio-lently assaulted one of the school’smost-able athletes. In the language ofthe times, he was asked not to returnto Ivanhoe Grammar.

The last time I spoke to ‘Cooka’was in 1973 - 40 years ago.

He finished his final secondaryschool year at Carey Baptist Gram-mar School, boasting later that one ofhis contemporaries there - and atMonash University - was PeterCostello, later to be Federal Treasurer.

By Ash Long, Editor

Former Victorian criminalStephen Cookson has beenfound dead in Western Austra-lia. An 11-year-old girl found hissevered head in a plastic bag.Editor ASH LONG looks back atthe violent life of a school col-league.