| Gregory David Roberts |
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| roberts, gregory david | |
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Roberts was a university student when he became involved in radical politics. Following the disintegration of his marriage and the loss of custody of his daughter, he became a heroin addict and turned to armed robbery to obtain money to support his addiction. Known in Melbourne, Australia , as the ''Building Society Bandit'' and ''Chicken Man'', he was arrested on February 22 , 1978 . Sentenced to 23 years' Imprisonment , he was sent to Pentridge Prison where he became known as "Doc Smith" due to his medical skills. His sentence was reduced on appeal but he still made use of the first opportunity to escape, accompanied by another man named Trevor Jolly . After making use of Trade Union connections to flee to Perth , Smith then flew to New Zealand and made some money with a large Marijuana crop. This financed an aeroplane ticket to Europe, with a stopover in Bombay . He remained in Bombay for another eight years. During his stay in Bombay, Smith assumed another name and lived in a Slum as a doctor. He then became part of the Bombay mafia. A trader in illegal currencies, he was eventually arrested in Germany due to a fake passport. Rather than attempt to escape again, he resolved to return to Australia and serve the rest of his sentence. SHANTARAM See Also: Shantaram Smith wrote the account of his life in Bombay, called "Shantaram" after the name he was given by the mother of his closest friend. This account was torn up by a Prison Officer . A second version was also destroyed. Upon release, Smith changed his name to Gregory David Roberts in honour of his mother, and made an income from small writing assignments while he finished writing " Shantaram " for the third time. This book, a novel which is a fictionalised account of his life in Bombay where he was called "Lin" (a short form of the name on the New Zealand passport he stole - Lindsay), has become an international bestseller. Roberts plans to write a prequel and a sequel. A movie based on (see " Shantaram (film) ") is scheduled to be made which will star Johnny Depp as Roberts. Details are still sketchy but it will be loosely based upon the book and will mainly concentrate on his experiences in India and his underworld dealings REFERENCES
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