REMEMBER WHEN

GOLD COAST BULLETIN Monday, February 2, 2004

A ROMANTIC stroll along a quiet beach in the early evening – it’s a sacred Gold Coast tradition.

But for two teenagers, the dream became a nightmare when they were terrorised and robbed at gunpoint on Burleigh Beach.

In what police described as an unprecedented attack, Riordan Kelly and his girlfriend were

stripped of their valuables and forced to turn around before the thieves threatened to shoot them in the back.

The terrifying robbery happened within sight of families and holiday-makers on Burleigh’s popular esplanade.

The incident shocked regular beachwalkers, including Mayor Gary Baildon, who said it was frightening to think it could happen on the Coast.

Mr Kelly, from Robina, said he and a female friend, who did not

want to be identified, were approached by two men asking for the time.

He said he pulled out his phone to check the time and the man asked him to ‘hand it over’.

“I said ‘no’ and that’s when he pulled the gun out and pointed it at my stomach. He told me to hand over the phone, my wallet and my friend’s bag.

“He said ‘now turn around and walk down the beach’. He told me he was going to shoot me in the back as I walked away.”