Arundel, QLD: Vision of firebombing attacks released

Vision of two firebombing attacks on the same Gold Coast block of commercial units — just four days apart — has been released by Queensland Police in what they believe is “some kind of payback”.

The first suspicious blaze broke out in a unit on Distribution Crt, in the Arundel Business Park about 3.30am on June 24, police said.

CCTV images from that morning show a lone man dressed in black approach the unit belonging to The Bento Buzz, carrying a jerry can and a hammer.

He breaks into the unit, pours the contents of the jerry can onto the ground, ignites it, and flees the scene.

Four days later, at the same commercial premises, two men can be seen cutting a hole in the roof of a car wrapping business belonging to influencer Troy Candy.

They pour an accelerant into the hole, ignite it, and leave the scene.

Detective Acting Inspector Mark Proctor on Friday told the media the attack was “targeted and organised.”

“We think the first fire was an accident, they got the wrong unit, and we believe they came back the second time better prepared,” said Mr Proctor.

“They created a lot more damage and we believe the second unit was their intended target.

“The first attempt was pretty amateurish, the second was quite organised. They did cut holes in the roof and they poured accelerants and lit them. And you can see in the footage the explosion it made. It’s quite elaborate, it’s quite a lot.”

Both The Bento Buzz and Mr Candy’s business, Eye Candy Motorsports, were destroyed in the resulting fires, with Mr Candy “in the dark” as to who could be targeting him.

“Normally when you talk about people targeting businesses something is thrown through the front window or something like that, where this is going to a lot of trouble to either send a message or to cause financial detriment to the person” Mr Proctor said.

“Obviously it was some kind of payback or to cause some kind of financial detriment. His business is ruined, it’s closed. It was uninsured.”

Bento Buzz owner Petra posted about her heartache at the loss of her business on social media, after eight years in the Distribution Crt location.

“My heart is broken and I can’t stop crying,” Petra wrote on Instagram, “I have no other words for now, I need to wrap my head around this devastating turn of events.

“Thank you for your support of our family business over the last eight years. It’s meant the world to me.”

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Anyone with information regarding either attack is urged to contact police on 131 444.

Troy Candy is a former graphic designer who shot to fame after customising vehicles.

He has about 40,000 followers on Instagram, and 198,000 followers on Facebook.

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