THE nightly reign of terror on Gold Coast streets is continuing after two armed robberies overnight.

The first happened at Elanora shortly before 10am when a man armed with an unidentified weapon entered a store at the Nineteenth Avenue Shopping Centre and demanded cash.

He fled a short time later with a sum of clash.

Just over an hour later, in similar circumstances, a man armed with a weapon entered a store on Cotlew Street demanding cash.

He took off with takings from the till.

The man involved in the Ashmore incident was described as being of Pacific Islander appearance, 168cm with a solid build and brown eyes.

There have been over 20 armed robberies this month and police have solved just three.

Gold Coast officers have confirmed they will seek assistance from police in Brisbane to help solve the crimes.

Anyone with information that can assist police is asked to contact CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000.

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/...ourt-news.html

Do people think it’s the sign of the times or has the gold coast turned bad?
There have now been more than twenty Armed Robberies on the gold coast in the last month, it makes us feel as it’s getting a place where you would not want to have a business as it seems as you will be a target.
The police don’t know who are behind it and all they do is offer free visits to business to see if you can protect yourself from a Armed Robbery, what I ask who would want to be in that position with a gun in your face.
Why are the police not doing more to protect people and business on the gold coast?
It will hurt our tourism people will not want to Go to the Gold Coast

Police are probably behind it, they have easy access to "arms", or they are being paid to ignore it.

They are not attacking tourists, why would they stop coming?

Well, the GC unemployment rate is almost double the national average now.
Higher crime rates usually follow higher unemployment rates.
http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/...oast-news.html

Additionally, the GC apparently is ''the cocaine capital of Australia''
http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/...ourt-news.html

Well i didnt know that those figures were that bad, it does shock me that GC is that bad with unemployment and drugs

Coincidence...?

Very good, i like the way you think

Unfortunately, you are correct. The gold coast is slowly becoming more and more unsafe.

It is a small paradise spoiled by crimes, drugs and violence. Safety and nice weather are one of the reasons why migrants moved there, but the place is getting unsafe. The authorities are idle and lax, and they should move quicker before it gets out of control.

Was down couple of weekends ago, and have to say the inner area ( nope that isnt the entire coast) is looking right seedy. Business obviously a bit grim too, we ate in a fab little steak place the guy was doing steak chips and salad, top quality, best we have ever had down there and it was only $10 and the place was empty, 8pm saturday night. Left the restaurant feeling sorry for the owner

They had some meter maids, one with cellulite ( good on ya love, gok would give ya the ) and a lot of pissed blokes milling round I dont know it made it look a bit sad and seventies.

We lived there briefly years ago and I remember a much more vibrant busy place it just looked so grotty now, but perhaps we hit it on a bad night. Didnt see any crime, just one puker and one guy pissing in the main street plant pots.

Mind you had a great spend up in Ikea ( springwood south bris )on the way back and the resort hotel was cheap as chips $99 with breakfast so not all bad.

Hasn't the coast always been the bling sort of place that attracts gangsters?

5 years of owning retail business on the GC has led me to the following conclusions - The GC has always had a disturbing underbelly of mainly transient 'undesirables', a thriving drug trade and I feel even in business an unethical culture of not paying & cutting corners.
Is it getting worse? maybe but I still feel that the biggest threat to the long term growth and prosperity of the GC is the alarmingly high unemployment rate (currently double the national rate). Real jobs are not being created and the unemployed will soon move to other states dumping more houses on the already stagnant real estate market driving prices further down sending more people into negative equity
The scum that have held up these businesses will move on soon but the other underlying problems for the GC will remain

There certainly is a frontier town feeling about doing business - you have to learn very quickly or drown

Hah! sound like it's getting more and more like New Zealand every day

don't understand the attraction of the gc. It;'s nice for a weekend but it's basically a beach town run by the russian mafia.

is it any cheaper?