Melbourne doctor charged over link to Dons supplements scandal figure Shane Charter

A Melbourne doctor has been charged after an organised crime probe into the activities of Essendon ­supplements scandal figure Shane Charter.

A Melbourne doctor has been charged after an organised crime investigation into the activities of Essendon ­supplements scandal figure Shane Charter.

John Alfred Marx will face Melbourne Magistrates’ Court this month after being charged by investigators from the ­Victoria Police Echo taskforce.

Dr Marx, who has worked at various Melbourne clinics over the decades, was arrested and interviewed in October following a raid at Shane ­Charter’s property.

He was charged with failing to store a schedule-four poison in a lockable storage unit.

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency is liaising with police over the matter.

A court has heard Dr Marx’s medical practice, on Nicholson St, Fitzroy, was raided by Echo on September 15, 2022.

The commercial property was owned or co-owned by Charter.

Dr John Alfred Marx.

Detective Senior Constable Lewis Vincent told the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court last month that police would allege Charter and Dr Marx had an “arrangement” to obtain prescription medication and ­onsell it to people without ­prescriptions.

He said during the raid, police found prescription items with blacked-out labels in packages addressed to new ­patients at higher prices than what they ought to be sold for.

Constable Vincent said his simple explanation of what police alleged they were doing was “repackaging and reselling medications issued to patients, to other patients”.

But Charter’s lawyer argued there may be nothing illegal going on, with Dr Marx prescribing the medicines and being a registered practitioner.

Constable Vincent told the court police had seized text messages from Charter’s phones that indicated customers were asking him for medication and he was agreeing to supply it.

The details were heard during an application by Charter in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court to vary his bail so he could travel overseas.

Victoria Police is fighting his bid for the return of his passport, fearing he is a flight risk and may not come back.

Shane Charter. Picture: Instagram

The police officer said text messages on seized phones showed he had discussed his ­interest in getting a Dutch passport and dual citizenship.

Charter denies text messages seized from his phone were evidence of any plans to flee.

He has been ordered not to associate with Dr Marx as part of his bail conditions.

Dr Marx will return to court on February 17, while Charter will learn the outcome of his bail application on February 13.

Charter’s Nicholson St clinic was raided in September last year.

On the day of his arrest, officers from the Australian Taxation Office hit him with a $2m bill. He responded that the ATO could “kiss my arse”.

Charter said police scrutiny of his clinic happened because he had treated underworld figures like Sam “The Punisher” Abdulrahim and Toby Mitchell.