Arson charge over multi-million dollar Rochedale shop fire

A man has been charged over a fire that caused millions of dollars of damage at a shopping centre in Rochedale, Logan.

The 26-year-old has been charged with arson and attempted fraud after a lengthy police investigation into the blaze, which broke out just after midnight on September 18 at the Underwood Road centre.

Fourteen businesses were damaged in the fire, which broke out in an Indian restaurant.

At the time, a baker told police he heard someone trying to force their way into the shop before the blaze began, and investigators said there were signs of forced entry.

The attempted fraud charge relates to the alleged arson of a vehicle at Beenleigh in August, police said. A 21-year-old woman has also been charged with arson and fraud over the vehicle fire, as well as drug possession.

Both are due to appear in the Beenleigh Magistrates Court today, and the police investigation is ongoing.