'How happy we were': A rare look into the Williams family photo album shows Carl and Roberta in the early 2000s at the height of Melbourne's underworld war - including the $150k christening they threw for their daughter Dhakota
- Roberta Williams has provided a rare look at family photos from the early 2000s
- Her notorious crime boss husband Carl and daughter Dhakota feature heavily
- Many of the photos were taken at Dhakota's exravagant christening in late-2001
- The lavish affair reportedly cost $150,000 and feature leading a popstar singer
- A young Dhakota and Roberta are in photos with hitman Andrew 'Benji' Veniamin
Crime matriarch Roberta Williams has provided a never-before-seen look into the life of her controversial family during the height of Melbourne's gangland war.
Roberta, the outspoken wife of crime boss Carl, shared images of her family from the early 2000s to Instagram this week after digging out her old photo albums.
Her convicted murderer husband and their daughter Dhakota, then a toddler, feature prominently, as does Carl's trusted right-hand man and infamous killer Andrew 'Benji' Veniamin.
Infamous gangster Carl Williams (right) hugs his young daughter Dhakota (left) in never before seen photos posted on Instagram by the family's matriarch Roberta
A young Dhakota smiles happily in one of the images as she plays with her father Carl's right-hand man Andrew 'Benji' Veniamin (right)
'I miss my life': Of this photo of Carl Williams (left), Andrew 'Benji' Veniamin (centre), George Williams (right) and Dhakota Williams (front), only the teenage girl is still alive
In one image Carl can be seen holding a young Dhakota in his arms as he kisses her on the cheek.
'Daddy's princess,' Roberta captioned the photo.
The image, taken in late-2001 at Dhakota's christening at Melbourne's Crown Casino, could have depicted any father and his daughter.
But the toddler's baptism was by no means a normal one.
Not only did it cost $150,000 and feature popstar Vanessa Amorosi as the major act, the crowd was littered with some of Melbourne's most serious criminals - at a time when the deadliest gangland war Australia has ever seen was being waged.
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Chief among them were Williams - who was convicted of murdering four men during the 12-year war - and his trusted right-hand man Veniamin, who's suspected of killing a total of seven people.
One photo shows Dhakota smiling happily as she plays with Veniamin, while another captures the toddler poking her tongue out at the camera as she sits in the hitman's arms.
'Your faces tell the story. How happy we were,' Roberta wrote alongside the photo.
Veniamin features in several more images, firstly alongside the family matriarch.
Veniamin, who was shot dead by fellow crime heavyweight Mick Gatto in 2004, was believed to have been responsible for murdering seven men during Melbourne's 12-year gangland war
''What an amazing team we were. I will love you forever': Roberta Williams (right) poses next to her husband's most trusted adviser Veniamin at daughter Dhakota's christening in late-2001
Another photo from the event shows Veniamin (left) and Danielle Stephens (right), the child of Roberta Williams and her first husband Dean Stephens
Carl Williams kisses his daughter after being granted bail in December 2003, as wife Roberta watches on smiling
'What an amazing team we were. I will love you forever,' Roberta wrote.
Danielle Stephens, the daughter Roberta had with her first husband Dean Stephens, also appeared in the photo album alongside the killer.
'She was your shadow and you loved it. Where you went she was, no matter what, nothing came before her,' the photo was captioned.
Veniamin died on March 23, 2004, after he was shot dead following a struggle with fellow crime heavyweight Mick Gatto.
Gatto was charged with his murder, but later cleared on self-defence grounds.
Also appearing at the extravagant christening was popstar Vanessa Amarosi, who at the time was one of the leading acts in Australia.
Amarossi could be seen in one photo holding a young Dhakota as she sang on-stage at the Casino for the crowd.
Australian popstar Vanessa Amorosi holds a young Dhakota (pictured) as she performs for the large crowd gathered at the $150,000 event, held at Melbourne's Crown Casino
Dhakota controversially returned to the casino last year and was allowed into the exclusive Mahogany Room, despite being aged just 17
Carl and Roberta Williams are pictured outside court during one of his many appearances in the early 2000s
'It was absolutely amazing,' Amorosi told radio station Nova in 2009 of the party.
'They had a room in the casino all done up. I remember during the show thinking no one will get up and dance and if I start singin' bad I'm just gonna get shot.
'I was like, "Let's make sure it's a killer show, guys, or it could be a killer ending".'
The family chose the casino because they believed it had the best security in the state.
Carl and his associates gave the same reasoning for staging secret meetings at the venue until then police commissioner Christine Nixon banned him in April 2004.
Dhakota returned to Crown in 2018 and made headlines for the wrong reasons, after being allowed into the exclusive Mahogany Room - despite only being aged 17.
The teenager posted a photo of herself and a friend inside the gaming room, but the casino was later cleared of any wrongdoing by the gambling authority.
Carl Williams (pictured) was convicted of murdering four men during the 12-year underworld war, but in 2010 he was killed just inside Barwon Prison where he was serving a life sentence
Roberta (left) and Dhakota (right) arrive at the Supreme Court in Melbourne in December 2018
Williams was killed in 2010 while behind bars at Barwon Prison, but the family have continued to make the news since.
Most recently Roberta and Dhakota failed in their bid to keep ownership of the home where Carl and his wife raised their daughter.
The house was given to the Australian Tax Office, who sold it to claw back some of the $959,714 owed to them by Carl's late father George Williams.
George, like his son, had made his fortune from crime - with a major focus on dealing and importing drugs.
