Behind the Badge

The true story of one of Australia's top cops for readers of I CATCH KILLERS and THE GOOD COP

Nick Kaldas is a cop's cop. From investigating war criminals to taking down global drug operations, Kaldas has seen the worst humanity can offer. But he's also seen which human qualities can lead to greatness.

This is the compelling true story of an immigrant boy from Egypt who rose from beat cop to become one of the most senior police officers in Australia. During his time in the NSW police force, he was one of Australia's first Arab undercover cops, headed up both the Homicide and Gang Squad units, reformed the Counter Terrorism team and then became the Deputy Police Commissioner.

He has also faced down some of the toughest, most brutal criminal organisations in the world. In the Middle East, he was hand-picked by the United Nations to investigate the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri; investigate the illegal use of chemical weapons in Syria; and was the Director of Internal Oversight Services at UNRWA, the UN agency tasked with assisting Palestine refugees.

Having negotiated hostage situations, gained the trust of the Syrian secret police and chaired the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, Kaldas has learned a thing or two about resilience, courage and fortitude. In Behind the Badge, he describes the most challenging cases that have shaped him and reveals what it takes to stand up for what's right in the face of insurmountable opposition.

About the Author

Nick Kaldas was born in Egypt in 1958 and moved with his family to Australia in 1969. He served in the NSW Police for 35 years, the last ten as the Deputy Commissioner. His career was mainly in major and organised crime investigations and counter terrorism. As head of the Homicide Squad, he led the investigation into the murder of John Newman MP and oversaw many other investigations, including the murders committed by Sef Gonzales.

Nick also held a number of significant international roles, including Deputy Chief Police Adviser with the Coalition Forces in Iraq in 2004, overseeing the rebuilding of the Iraqi police and security forces; Chief of investigations in the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon in 2009-10, investigating the assassination of former prime minister Rafic Hariri and a number of other assassinations; and Chief of Investigations of the UN/OPCW investigation into the use of chemical weapons in 2016.

He recently served as Chair and Commissioner for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.