High profile ethnic printer Theo Skalkos is facing serious charges of indecent assault against a teenage girl. Skalkos, 83, appeared in a Sydney court, and pleaded not guilty in to assaulting the 19-year-old girl in Mascot on February 4 between 10am and 10.10am. The case will return to court on September 14. The current owner of FL Press, Skalkos rose to prominence with his 40 year ownership of what became the biggest ethnic print and publishing business in Australia, Media Press, which at its height produced around 70 ethnic newspaper and soccer titles and owned various radio stations. However in 2003 the company collapsed with debts of $10m, and Skalkos himself was bankrupted with debts of more than $25m, some of it to prominent members of the Greek community. Readers with long memories will remember that Media Press went broke only two years after moving into the old Diamond Press building – the one with the inhouse swimming pool – after Skalkos bought its two heatset Baker Perkins webs at auction in an attempt to break out of his coldest market.

Charged: Theo Skalkos

Never far from controversy Skalkos has had various brushes with the law, including for threating a plumber with a shotgun, and was sued by his own solicitor over a $300,000 unpaid fee. His current business FL Press itself was alleged by some to be a Phoenix, arising from the ashes of Media Press, with Skalkos buying back some of the equipment. Skalkos arrived as an immigrant from Greece in the 1950s. After spells working in a clothing factory and in harvesting he began a driving school for immigrants like himself. Having had a printing job for his business cards botched he bought an old single colour press and began printing himself, launching a Greek newspaper shortly afterwards. In the following years he built a significant empire printing newspapers for the nation’s immigrant communities, keen to receive news and soccer reports from their home countries. Visitors to his old site were treated to one of the best Moussakas in the country, available every day in the staff canteen.

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