Melbourne Nightclub Love Machine Destroyed By 'Suspicious' Fire

Love Machine, the nightclub located in the Melbourne suburb of Prahran, was destroyed in a fire that police suspect could be an arson attack.

ABC and 9 News report that Victoria Police are following “a number of leads” after Love Machine was targeted in a “suspected firebombing attack” in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Smoke was first spotted coming from the venue at the intersection of Malvern Road and Chapel Street after 2 am. 45 firefighters and 14 appliances, including three aerial platforms, worked for over two hours to put out the fire.

Reports note that, due to significant difficulties accessing the venue, Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) fought to control the fire from the outside, bringing the blaze on the first floor under control by 4:25 am.

Police seized two 20-litre jerry cans from the front of the venue. The Herald Sun reports that police suspect offenders used a vehicle to ram Love Machine’s front door before spreading accelerant and setting it on fire.

In a statement, Local Arena Commander Acting Inspector Kim Bramwell told the Herald Sun that it was “very lucky” the incident happened overnight on a weeknight rather than the weekend, as Chapel Street is “such a thriving entertainment precinct.”

Bramwell added that nobody was hurt despite the fire, “and that’s our saving grace at this moment.”

Love Machine has been closed since last September due to alleged licensing breaches. Its closure follows years of being the scene of violence, including a double-fatal drive-by shooting, violent brawls involving gangland figures, and allegations of sexual assault within the venue.

Sterling Nightclubs, which owns Love Machine, previously ran the Lux Nightclub on Chapel Street, which was destroyed in an arson attack in November 2024. Thus, Victoria Police aren’t ruling out previous incidents.

“I don’t call anything a coincidence… everything is planned or thought out, so we’ll be going through methodically and try to establish if there is a link or if it was random,” Bramwell told the Herald Sun.

Bramwell added that police will be investigating “insurance, organised crime,” or whether it was a one-off attack.

Nearby shopfronts to the venue, including a dentist, hairdresser, and a bottle shop, reportedly sustained damage to their businesses due to the fire.