Meat cleaver found at Bella’s Wonderland, Southport

A Gold Coast mum says that what started as a magical day ended in shock after her six-year-old discovered a meat cleaver hidden in play equipment.

What started as a magical day ended in shock after a six-year-old discovered a meat cleaver hidden in an up market children’s play centre.

Gold Coast mother Tiani Palmer said she paid just under $600 for a party of 10 at Bella’s Wonderland in Southport on July 6 to celebrate her daughter’s fourth birthday.

“It wasn’t long after we had arrived,” she said.

“I was luckily in the playground with my daughter at the time. We were up the top of the slide and my son who’s six yelled to me, ‘we found a knife, we found a knife’.”

Her six-year-old son was holding a meat cleaver, found stashed in play equipment – luckily bringing it straight to his mother’s attention.

The meat cleaver found by a child at Bella’s Wonderland.

“I took it to staff,” Ms Palmer said.

“I said how on earth does something like that get into your playground, and they were like, ‘Oh, I don’t know, that’s not one of our knives,’ which makes it even more disturbing.”

Ms Palmer said herself and other witnesses were in “absolute shock”.

“How did that even get in there? The fact that it’s not even their knife makes it ten times worse,” Ms Palmer said.

Bella's Wonderland, Southport. Picture: Instagram/bellaswonderlandgc

Bella's Wonderland, Southport. Picture: Instagram/bellaswonderlandgc

“That means somebody has brought it in there. My brain was just running wild thinking what are the intentions behind the knife? Did an adult come in and stash it somewhere to then come back and hurt children? What was the intent of bringing a knife like that to a place like that?”

Ms Palmer said the area where the knife was found was not in eyesight of parents watching from the outside.

“I’m just thankful that my son is a very good six-year-old and brought it to our attention,” she said.

“Anything could have happened. Best case scenario is that my son found it and not a two-year-old or another child stepping on it and cutting themselves, or grabbing it thinking it was a toy.”

Meat cleaver found at Bella's Wonderland

Ms Palmer reported the incident to police. A Queensland Police Service spokesperson said the centre also lodged an online report to police, however were unable to determine how the knife got there.

“Officers spoke with management and staff, however it remains unknown who placed the knife at the location or when it was placed there,” the spokesperson said.

“CCTV footage did not assist with identifying any offender. At this time, there are no further avenues of investigation.”

The incident still managed to leave a mark on Ms Palmer’s six-year-old son who, for days following, kept uttering the words, ‘I found a knife’.

Tiani and her daughter at Bella's Wonderland

The mum-of-two said she was disappointed with how the centre had managed the situation.

“The price you pay for a birthday party at one of these places, you would really think it was a safe environment for your children,” she said.

A Bella’s Wonderland spokesperson said they were aware of the incident and the safety and wellbeing of children, families and staff who visit the centre was their highest priority.

“We have reviewed our CCTV footage and are continuing to work closely with the authorities,” they said.

“We are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness. While we understand how distressing this situation is for parents and the broader community, we want to reassure everyone that we are doing everything we can to support the investigation and maintain a safe environment for all.”

Originally published as Meat cleaver found at Bella’s Wonderland, Southport