Kirsch's associates have included slain underworld figures Nik Radev, Sam Zayat and Phillip "The Iceman" Wilson.

He once advised Zayat in a joint property deal with his eventual killer, Nicholas Ibrahim.

Kirsch was convicted in 1991 of being an accessory after the fact to the murders of drug dealers Ricky Parr and Lina Galea.

He jumped through a window to escape a 1997 raid on Arden Lodge by thugs armed with guns and baseball bats.

Kirsch ran Arden Lodge, in North Melbourne, as a halfway house for ex-prisoners and the homeless.

Informers have told police that Middap had attempted to sell them firearms and that they have seen him in possession of firearms.

On March 29, 2004, a jury heard  that former law clerk, Ali Aydin threatened to sue a police officer if he did not reduce the number of criminal charges against his client.

The County Court was told that Helmut Kirsch, along with Aydin, had threatened Detective Senior Constable and reality TV star, Benjamin Archbold in July 2001 in a bid to influence the criminal case against Housam ''Sam'' Zayat.

Prosecutor Andy Moore said Aydin and Kirsch were trying to frighten Mr Archbold so he would "go soft with their client".

The jury heard that Aydin"directly threatened" Mr Archbold with civil and criminal charges, and had also threatened to leak his address to Nik Radev, who was described as "an armed loose cannon".

Such "tactics" implemented by Aydin but "devised by Kirsch" had effectively "held a gun to the head" of Mr Archbold, the Judge said.

The threats included reporting Mr Archbold to police on corruption claims and fabricating evidence.

The court heard that after the threats were initially made, Mr Archbold was fitted with a recording device to tape further conversations with Aydin and Kirsch, who had allegedly told Mr Archbold that Radev was "violent" and "a lunatic".

Kirsch pleaded not guilty to one count of intending to pervert the course of public justice.

Aydin had been charged with the same offence as Kirsch, but had been tried separately.

Kirsch was found guilty of threatening Archbold and sentenced to 15 months' jail, six of which were suspended.

This was reduced on appeal.

Kirsch has convictions for drug, dishonesty, firearms and theft offences.

There were also allegations that he test-fired rocket launchers and visited heroin dens in Afghanistan.

Kirsch featured in an article in an expose of security/terrorist policing concerning the Commonwealth Games to be held in Melbourne.

He was formerly a member of the far right National Action group, before finding religion, and transferring to 'Islamic fascistic-literalism'.