Norman Bruhn (2 June 1894 – 23 June 1927) was a notorious and violent Australian dockworker, armed robber and standover man with links to the criminal underworld in both Melbourne and Sydney. In September 1926 Bruhn relocated with his family from Melbourne to Sydney, where he attained a brief ascendancy by targeting the underworld vice trade, using violence and intimidation against cocaine traffickers, prostitutes and thieves. Bruhn's criminal gang used the straight razor as a weapon of terror and are attributed as Australia's first 'razor gang', at the beginning of a period of gang violence in Sydney in the late-1920s known as the 'razor gang wars'. His period of domination of the inner-city vice economy was opposed by the more established criminal networks in Sydney. In June 1927 Bruhn was shot twice in the abdomen in an inner-city laneway in Darlinghurst. He died in Sydney Hospital the following morning, having refused to name his assailant.
Bruhn's life and times were portrayed in the television series on the Nine television network in Australia, Underbelly: Razor.
Biography
Early life
Norman Leslie Bruhn was born on 2 June 1894 at Geelong, the fifth of ten children of Oscar Johann Bruhn and Mary Anne (née McFarlane).Family records (per Ancestry.com). The father of the family, Oscar Bruhn, worked as a baker, employed since 1884 at John Little's Bakery in Moorabool-street, South Geelong.Alleged Offences Against Girls, Ballarat Star, 19 October 1911, page 4.Special Announcements, Geelong Advertiser, 3 July 1913, page 3. There is evidence that Norman and his siblings were raised in an atmosphere punctuated by occasional bouts of violence, exacerbated by his father's excessive drinking and short temper.
In June 1906 a notice was placed in the pages of the Geelong Advertiser by Norman's father, Oscar Bruhn of Fyans-street, South Geelong, directed to Edward Robinson of Geelong, apologising for an "unprovoked assault" committed upon him a week previously, and acknowledging "that it was absolutely without justification".Mr. Edward Robinson, Geelong, Geelong Advertiser, 30 June 1906, page 3.
In May 1908 Norman Bruhn, aged 14 years, was admitted to the Geelong Hospital. He had been working in a local woollen mill when his arm was caught in a loom, causing a fracture and dislocation of the lower portion of the limb.Geelong Hospital Cases, Geelong Advertiser, 23 May 1908, page 3.
On 6 June 1908 Oscar Bruhn (senior) was officiating as a goal umpire at a football match between the Barwon and Chillwell Juniors teams at Kardinia Park in South Geelong. During the match the secretary of the Chillwell club, Albert Mattingley, was within the playing field near the goal posts and Bruhn claimed Mattingley was obstructing his view. He was asked to leave the ground, and when he refused, Bruhn tried to put him over the fence, but was unsuccessful. After the match, as Mattingley was picking up the goal flags, Bruhn struck him heavily on his back. In consequence Mattingley proceeded against Bruhn for assault. The Bench of magistrates fined the goal umpire ten shillings "for undertaking work not governed by the rules of football".Assault, Geelong Advertiser, 17 June 1908, page 6.Not in the Rules of Football, Ballarat Star, 17 Jun 1908, page 6.
In late May 1909 Oscar Bruhn was charged with unlawful assault after he threw his own son through a window at his residence in South Geelong. It was alleged that Bruhn arrived home in a violent mood. He initially threw a plate at his wife that missed. He then picked up his child by the legs, swung him around, and hurled the boy through a glass window and bamboo blind. The child landed in the street, in shock but with only a few scratches. At the Geelong West Police Court on 31 May 1918 Bruhn's legal representative stated that "the whole affair arose out of a family squabble" and that "the parties would adjust the matter themselves". The boy "said he had no desire to press the charge", so the police withdrew the charge and Bruhn was allowed to go free.The Man Oscar Bruhn, Ballarat Star, 2 June 1909, page 3.Shocking Treatment of a Boy, The Age (Melbourne), 31 May 1909, page 6.
In November 1909 Oscar Bruhn (senior) was brought up on a charge of using insulting language at South Geelong. He was fined just one shilling after he signed "the pledge".Police Court, Geelong Advertiser, 24 November 1909, page 3.
In November 1910 Norman Bruhn was one of five people fined ten shillings each for riding bicycles at night without lights.Evading the By-Laws, Geelong Advertiser, 23 November 1910, page 6.
In September 1911 Oscar Bruhn (senior) was arrested and charged with the indecent assault of 22-year-old Margaret Sudgell at Marshall-town, near Geelong. On the morning of 16 September Bruhn had called at several hotels before arriving at Bett's house at Marshall-town to buy eggs. It was alleged that he tried to assault Sudgell, who was employed by Mrs. Betts. Bruhn was tried in the Ballarat Supreme Court on 18 October. After hearing the evidence the jury returned a verdict of not guilty and the accused was discharged.
Larrikin activities
In July 1914 in the Geelong Police Court, Norman Bruhn was charged with offensive behaviour. Bruhn did not appear, but his legal representative pleaded guilty on his behalf, explaining that the defendant had received a position in a wool-shed and so was unable to attend court. The circumstances of the charge were detailed by Senior-constable Trainor, who stated that he and another constable were at the corner of Jacobs and Little Malop streets when "a party of youths… approached them and commenced boo-hooing and ran away". They repeated this behaviour on several occasions, with Bruhn identified by the policeman as the ring-leader of the larrikin 'push'. Bruhn was fined forty shillings (in default, 14 days' imprisonment).Geelong Police Court: Another "Push" Man Fined, Geelong Advertiser, 22 July 1914, page 6.
In September 1914 the city of Bendigo held a railway picnic which attracted numerous visitors, many arriving on special trains from Melbourne. At about 6 p.m. at the corner of Hargreaves and Mitchell streets a number of young men "who had been imbibing too freely" started an argument "regarding the war". The argument led to punches being thrown. One of the men was knocked down, "his head striking the roadway with considerable force". Others joined in and a considerable crowd quickly gathered to witness the melee. Mounted Constable Dwyer arrived on the scene and caught one of the belligerents, Norman Bruhn, by the scruff of the neck and took him into custody. Bruhn was locked up and charged with offensive behaviour.Disorderly Incidents: Fight in the Streets, The Age (Melbourne), 14 September 1914, page 7.Visitor in Trouble, Bendigo Independent, 15 September 1914, page 2.
War record
Norman Bruhn enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 4 December 1914. He was initially placed in the 6th Battalion (transferred to the 46th Battalion in March 1916). Bruhn left Australia in February 1915, serving at Gallipoli and in France. His service record is scattered with frequent occurrences of drunkenness, absence without leave and desertion. He was court-martialled on two occasions (November 1916 and August 1917) and was treated in hospital for gonorrhoea a number of times. He was detained in prison and in hospital for various periods. When the war ended in November 1918 Bruhn was arrested and was treated for venereal disease. He escaped from custody and was absent without leave in France from March to October 1919. He was finally apprehended at Amiens and taken to London, where he was court-martialled for a third time and detained in custody. Bruhn left England aboard the Konigin Luise in December 1919, arriving at Melbourne in February 1920 and was discharged from the army, with the unexpired portion of his sentence remitted.
Norman Bruhn and 19-year-old waitress Irene Wyatt were married in May 1920 at St. Francis' Church in Melbourne.The Great Mistake, Truth (Sydney), 17 July 1927, page 1. The couple had two children: Keith, born in April 1921 in Melbourne and Noel, born in 1924.Victorian marriage record, Norman Bruhn and Irene Wyatt, 1920; Reg. No.: 5089/1920. After his discharge from the army Bruhn worked on the docks for a short time "before moving into a career in crime".McNab (2015), page 184.
Criminal activities
On 26 July 1920 Bruhn was arrested and charged with having unlawfully assaulted Constable William Gleeson in the execution of his duties. Ten days previously Gleeson had been knocked down by two men during an attempted arrest. The constable fired his revolver at the men as the pair escaped. Bruhn was recognised and apprehended while police were inquiring into other matters at North Melbourne. His occupation was recorded as a woolworker.Assault Charges Laid, The Argus (Melbourne), 27 July 1920, page 7.
On 21 December 1920 Edward Waterson, in company with his family, went to the Spencer Street Station to catch a train to Adelaide. As he approached the ticket window Waterson took two £5 notes from his pocket; as he did so, Stanley Bruhn, Norman's younger brother, stepped up, struck Waterson and took the notes from his hand. Waterson snatched back the notes and Bruhn then ran away. He was later found in the Inward Parcels Office, identified and arrested. At the time of the occurrence Norman Bruhn was found to have been standing nearby with some other men. He too was arrested and charged with loitering with the intent to commit a felony. Both Norman and Stanley Bruhn were remanded until 29 December, with bail fixed at £50.Two Brothers Remanded, The Herald (Melbourne), 22 December 1920, page 11.
On the night of 14 February 1921 the factory belonging to Elizabeth Goller in Guildford-lane (between Latrobe and Little Lonsdale streets in Melbourne) was robbed of serge and other dress materials worth £200. Norman Bruhn was suspected of the crime and his movements were kept under surveillance for several days. On 17 February it was decided to raid Bruhn's house in West Melbourne where two rolls of serge identified as being part of the stolen goods were found. Both Bruhn and his wife Irene were subsequently charged with the robbery in the City Watchhouse.Man and Wife Arrested: Factory-Breaking Alleged, The Argus (Melbourne), 18 February 1921, page 5. Norman and Irene Bruhn were tried on the robbery charge before a jury and acquitted, after Irene had claimed "that a man had pushed the serge through the front window of her house and had not returned for it". In June 1921, however, the pair faced a magistrate in the City Court on the charge of having been in unlawful possession of the goods. On this occasion Bruhn was discharged, but Irene Bruhn was fined £5. The magistrate commented: "What often satisfies a jury would not satisfy a magistrate".Juries and Magistrates, The Herald (Melbourne), 30 June 1921, page 10.