A former manager at a brothel in Bondi Junction has recalled the ‘bizarre’ encounter she had with wannabe sex worker and crazed Westfield killer Joel Cauchi – and revealed her chilling theory behind what may have triggered his stabbing rampage.
Cee Rodriguez, 39, was managing now-closed brothel ‘The Flamingo Club’ on Ebley Street in Bondi Junction August last year when she received a ‘bizarre’ application from a man called ‘Joel’.
He sent a picture of himself wearing a tight-fitting Manchester United football club jersey while straddling a chair with his arms folded, claiming he would be ‘open to servicing both men and women’.
‘I said to my friend, “obviously this kid is an amateur” because this is work, this is a business and if you want us to take you seriously, you need to present yourself as such,’ Ms Rodriguez told Daily Mail .
‘We did bitch about it because that’s what we do. I said “look at this guy, oh my God, he’s delusional” and my friend was like “who the f*** would pay for that?”‘
‘I thought, what the hell, this isn’t Green Street hooligans. Are you trying to sell sex using this picture? You’re not endearing yourself to anybody.’
Despite her immediate reaction, Ms Rodriguez sent ‘Joel’ a polite response, telling him they did not accept men in the establishment but suggested they could reach a ‘booking only’ arrangement if there was interest in him.
Cee Rodriguez (pictured), 39, was managing the now-closed brothel ‘The Flamingo Club’ on Ebley Street in August last year when she received a ‘bizarre’ application from a man called ‘Joel’.
He sent a picture of himself wearing a tight-fitting Manchester United football club jersey while straddling a chair with his arms folded and said he would be ‘open to servicing both men and women’
Ms Rodriguez was so troubled by the encounter she saved his number as ‘Wtf’ on her personal device (pictured) and ran it through a database, which did not throw up any red flags
‘I told him we could do a room rental rate, you could use the facilities, you’ll be safe, you can have all the supplies and towels and everything if we take a booking,’ she said.
‘But his application was very sloppy, very unprofessional. He would answer questions with questions.
‘I said, “do you mind me asking how much experience you’ve kind of had?”
“And he was like, “look, I just want to know if you get female clientele”.’
Ms Rodriguez said she had received never received an application like Cauchi’s before.
‘Anyone who wants to work in the industry and thinks that they’re going to make money servicing women, I tell them, “listen, unless you’re going to go gay for pay, you’re going to be pretty broke”,’ she added.
‘If he hadn’t said men I would have just laughed. I would have sent a laughing emoji and blocked him.
‘But since he said men and because I know the demographic and some of the clientele and their requests, I entertained the idea of a booking-only arrangement.’
Despite that, Ms Rodriguez did not hold out much hope for his popularity.
‘I remember saying to my friend, “the only people that are gonna book this guy will be the ones who are drugged off their nut” and then I referenced a client we have who gets so f***** up on drugs and who’s desperate and will literally take anyone,’ she said.
‘I thought those are the only type of clients he’s going to get, ones that are desperate.’
Ms Rodriguez said Cauchi’s messages were ‘not coherent’ and she got the impression he had never actually done any sex work.
‘It seemed like he was trying to have a foray into the sex industry and not having much luck,’ she said.
‘If you are successful in this game, you don’t need to be cold messaging a brothel.’
Cauchi had also listed himself on several male escort websites, including Cracker, Empire Escorts and Escorts .
A visibly emaciated Cauchi (pictured) entered Westfield Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon and went on a stabbing rampage with a 30cm hunting knife, murdering six people and seriously injuring a dozen, including a nine-month-old baby
Pictured: Cauchi’s listing on one of the escort websites with which he registered
READ MORE: Joel Cauchi brought nightmarish horror to Westfield Bondi Junction… But today, one after the other, defiant ns filled a place of trauma and terror with a solemn peace, writes STEPHEN GIBBS
Westfield Bondi Junction re-opened on Thursday morning so members of the community could pay their respects to the six people killed in the shopping centre last weekend. A woman is pictured outside the complex at a makeshift memorial
In his online biography, he described himself as an ‘athletic good-looking 39-year-old’ based in Sydney who was looking for a ‘fun time’ – and offered dozens of ‘closed door services’ which are too graphic to publish.
In a bid to ‘let him down in a roundabout way’, Ms Rodriguez sent him an application form and told him if he wanted to come and do an interview he would need to bring ID.
‘In the application, it says that any drug use or threats of violence or actual physical violence or theft will be referred to New South Wales police,’ she said.
‘After I said that he had to fill out an application form and bring ID, he just wrote back saying, “don’t worry about it”.’
‘Had he approached with some sort of business acumen or just a more presentable photo I might have taken it more seriously but he just seemed so scattered and off.’
Ms Rodriguez was so troubled by the encounter she saved his number as ‘Wtf’ on her personal device and ran it through a database, which did not throw up any red flags.
She questioned whether his experience – or lack of it – in the sex industry might have been a trigger in his breakdown, leading to his murderous rampage.
‘This is pure speculation but if you were trying to offer services to women initially and you realised you weren’t going to make any money, you might expand to both men and women,’ she said.
‘If you were contracted by a couple, say a husband and a wife, the feedback that you might receive could be debilitating.
‘It can smash your fragile mental health.’
A visibly emaciated Cauchi entered Westfield Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon and went on a stabbing rampage with a 30cm hunting knife, murdering six people and seriously injuring a dozen, including a nine-month-old baby.
He was eventually shot dead by police.
On Monday, the killer’s distraught father revealed his son was a misogynist who had an ‘obsession’ with knives.
‘He had a problem with women, he couldn’t get a girlfriend,’ his father said.
Five of Cauchi’s six victims were women.