Kelly gained national fame as the head of the investigation into the notorious kidnapping and murder of Sydney schoolboy Graeme Thorne in 1960.
[3] Kelly acquired the "Gunner" nickname after two incidents early in his career when he drew his service revolver and fired at suspects.
He also had a talent for unorthodox approaches, such as when British gangster Billy Hill sailed into Sydney with the intention of starting a new life in Australia.
Hickie and others have alleged that Kelly and Detective Fred Krahe were involved in the protection rackets that fed on Sydney's then illegal abortion industry.
[4] Kelly also made "no secret" of his association with figures including abortionist Dr Reginald Stuart-Jones, illegal gaming tsars Perc Galea and Joe Taylor and leading Sydney gangsters Charles "Paddles" Anderson and Lenny McPherson.
By this time he was reputed to be the part-owner of an illegal casino in Gosford, New South Wales in partnership with the then NSW Police Commissioner Fred Hanson.