Asian Care For U massage parlour and laundromat horror before police arrest Surfers Paradise man
A laundromat owner has shared the horror as massage parlour staff were allegedly threatened with a gel blaster - initially thought to be a gun - as witnesses revealed a scary Surfers lockdown.
Gold Coast
Don't miss out on the headlines from Gold Coast. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A Surfers Paradise laundromat owner has told of his terror as an armed man allegedly tried to rob a neighbouring massage parlour before allegedly pointing the weapon at him and setting the building on fire.
Phil Scifleet said he feared he might be shot during the drama by what turned out to be a gel blaster but looked to him to be “a very real gun”.
Mr Scifleet said he had ordered dinner and was about to go home about 6.20pm on Thursday when pandemonium erupted in the Asian Care 4 U massage parlour next to his Laundry House business on Surfers Paradise Bvd.
“They (the staffer and her male friend) came running out yelling ‘help me, help me, there’s a guy with a gun’. No way in hell was I going in there and I rang the police straight away.”
Mr Scifleet said the massage parlour staffer and her 68-year-old friend, who had blood flowing down his face from a head wound,fled in fear.
“They took off around the corner and I had to shut the back door of my shop,” he said.
“He was banging on it, trying to get in.”
Mr Scifleet said he then saw the “(man) standing there with a gas can, screaming”.
“Within about 30 seconds, it (the massage parlour) just erupted (in flames) and smoke started coming out everywhere,” he said.
“The police were here within a few minutes but when someone’s banging on your door ... it felt like a lot longer.
“It turned out to be a gel blaster but it looked like a very real gun to me.”
Mr Scifleet, who has operated the laundromat for about a decade, said he had seen “a few crazy customers” over the years - “but nothing like this”.
He said he gave a statement to police who had also asked for CCTV footage, but power was cut to the building following thefire.
The interior of the massage parlour was badly damaged in the blaze.
The alleged male victim and another older man who was cleaning up the charred mess with a masked Asian woman declined to comment.
Police arrested a 41-year-old man who appeared in court on Friday and was denied bail.
WELCOME TO SURFERS - POLICE ORDERED ‘LOCK THE DOORS’
Witnesses have shared being plunged into a terrifying lockdown and hiding inside shops as armed police hunted a man reportedly with a firearm through a Gold Coast tourism hub.
A team of police, who were carrying rifles, were called to the dramatic incident along Surfers Paradise Boulevard in the visitor hotspot at around 6.25pm on Thursday.
Police allege a 41-year-old Surfers Paradise man - armed with a gel blaster - threatened and assaulted a woman working at a business on Surfers Paradise Boulevard.
It was alleged the man demanded money from the woman and her 68-year-old male friend before he fled the scene.
The man then allegedly returned to the business before getting in an altercation with a 68-year-old man.
The alleged victim sustained injuries to his face and neck.
The 41-year-old man then allegedly set fire to the foyer before he again fled the scene.
Multiple officers shut down Cavill Ave and Orchid Ave while they mounted a search.
Influencer Chloe Hunter shared a video to her 106,000 followers on TikTok of herself and multiple others locked inside Ghanda Clothing as police searched Surfers Paradise streets.
“The police told them (staff) to lock the doors and then (the police) started taping everywhere (outside),” Ms Hunter said.
She said she was locked inside the store for more than 30 minutes.
“Welcome to Surfers,” she captioned her video.
Other videos including footage shared by Alisha Isaacs to her 390,000 followers on TikTok, showed police walking into karaoke bar Tune Up next to Ghanda Clothing.
Multiple people were gathered, videoing police walking inside as they said “they are going in”.
Police later took a 41-year-old man found on main thoroughfare Cavill Ave into custody.
Cavill Ave and party strip Orchid Ave were reopened by 7.45pm.
Police charged the man with two counts of attempted robbery, use violence armed and one count each of arson, serious assault person over 60, enter premises with intent to commit indictable offence and obstruct police officer.
He was due to appear in Southport Magistrates Court on Friday, December 6.
More Coverage
Originally published as Asian Care For U massage parlour and laundromat horror before police arrest Surfers Paradise man
ICED OUT: Why cocaine is new king of meth-scarred cities
Meth’s decade-long reign of Queensland’s drug scene is over as experts warn white powder power is rising in its place. MAPPED HOTSPOTS, DRUG CRIMS NAMED
‘Such a proud moment’: Cheer gym named best on the Gold Coast
A Gold Coast cheerleading gym has been named the best in the region for the second year in a row.