00:01It just feels like another day, another arson attack at a hospitality venue in Melbourne.
00:08For the last couple of years we've been used to this often happening at tobacco shops, tobacconists linked to organised
00:17crime.
00:18But in the last month or so it's been happening more and more in Melbourne at hospitality venues, nightclubs, bars,
00:26eateries.
00:27And the latest one this morning is at the La Di Da nightclub at the corner of Little Bourke Street
00:33and King Street in the heart of Melbourne.
00:36Police say that at about 3.30 this morning emergency services were called to find the doors smashed in at
00:45a number of the entrances to La Di Da along both Little Bourke and King Streets and the place had
00:52been firebombed.
00:53And police say that a vehicle around just before that had been seen leaving the premises.
01:00Luckily, thankfully no one was inside at the time.
01:03Police this morning have said if there had been people inside at that time it could have been catastrophic consequences.
01:10And so there's a very large police cordon here this morning and police are treating it as very suspicious and
01:18are investigating.
01:19Now my ABC colleague Kate Mead was here earlier than me at the scene and she spoke to a security
01:26guard who was here earlier this morning and told her that his boss had been tipped off a few weeks
01:34ago that La Di Da nightclub could be next on the hit list.
01:39And they didn't know exactly what that meant but they were expecting trouble and that has indeed happened.
01:46We don't know what exact form that tip off took.
01:50We don't believe it was a text message but they were certainly expecting it and that security guard this morning
01:58has told us he's feeling like looking for a different job.
02:02The very important thing and the significant thing about this this morning is that detectives from a newly set up
02:10task force called Operation Eclipse are looking into this.
02:14And Operation Eclipse has only just been set up to look into arson attacks and fire bombings that all appear
02:22to be linked in recent weeks at hospitality venues.
02:26And a key part of the story here is the rise of illicit alcohol and police have been quite circumspect
02:34about the motivation of a lot of these hits on hospitality venues.
02:39But we've been told at the ABC that illicit alcohol is on the rise and so that is a big
02:46part of it.
02:47So thank you.
02:47So again, we have a moment to be here.
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