Tony Mokbel today began his long flight home from Greece to Australia, where a prison cell and murder charges await him. Mokbel was today taken in a police van from Korydallos prison in Athens to the city's international airport, and put aboard a Gulfstream jet chartered by Australian authorities. Armed Greek police and security guards guarded the tarmac as 42-year-old Mokbel, wearing a khaki top and pants, was taken from a blue security van and led in handcuffs aboard the plane at 8.30am (3.30pm AEST). Mokbel was taken aboard the aircraft by three police officers in dark suits. The plane had waited for Mokbel in a secluded cargo area at Athens International Airport, away from the main passenger terminals. Its window shutters down, the aircraft taxied out on to the runway and took off at 8.55am (3.55pm AEST). The flight to Melbourne could take up to 36 hours. Victorian Premier John Brumby defended the cost of the charter flight, believed to be up to $450,000, saying:``He's a serious criminal and we want him back in Australia so he can be tried and so he can serve his time.'' Mokbel's long-awaited departure from Greece follows an unsuccessful battle against extradition to Australia, where he faces murder and drugs charges, as well as a jail sentence for drug trafficking. Mokbel had spent nearly two days waiting in jail in Athens after being transferred from another prison at Larisa, north of Athens, on Wednesday. The Gulfstream jet, carrying a team of police, arrived in Athens on Wednesday night to collect Mokbel, who was arrested while living under a false name in the Greek capital last June. The details of Mokbel's return to Australia remained shrouded in secrecy tonight. However, he is expected to be taken on arrival in Melbourne to the maximum security Barwon Prison near Geelong, where fellow underworld figure Carl Williams is serving a minimum of 35 years' jail for the murders of three Melbourne gangland rivals. Mokbel fled Australia in early 2006 while on trial for cocaine trafficking. Convicted in his absence, he was sentenced to a minimum nine years in jail. He has since been charged with the murders of Melbourne underworld figure Lewis Moran and drug dealer Michael Marshall and is accused of a string of other drug offences. Greek Justice Minister Sotiris Hadjigakis approved Australia's extradition request on May 7 following a months-long legal battle. Mokbel says he will not face a fair trial in Australia, arguing that government officials have spoken publicly of his guilt before he was given a chance to present his case in court. Meanwhile, Mokbel yesterday had a final visit in jail from his girlfriend and the mother of his baby, Danielle McGuire, and Greek lawyer Yannis Vlachos. He told his lawyer he was looking forward to being reunited with his family in Melbourne, albeit in prison, and fighting to clear his name in court. "He was pretty quiet and I am sad he will be leaving Greece,'' Vlachos said. "What he told me was that one positive aspect about his return to Australia is he will meet his family again because it's been very hard for him not to see them for so long. "On the other hand, he is now preparing himself for what is coming to him. He will try to fight the charges against him in Australia. "He said he is expecting more fairness in his treatment when he returns and he is hoping to show the justice system he is not the monster that the mass media has painted him to be.'' AAP