Police have released footage of an alleged arsonist accidentally setting himself alight during a break-in at a Canberra barber shop.

Two people smashed the glass front door of the Gold Blade barber shop in Gungahlin at 11:40pm on Saturday July, 6.

CCTV footage shows an alleged arsonist dousing the shop with an accelerant and lighting it, setting himself on fire in the process.

He then leaves the shop, drops to the ground and is assisted by the other person to extinguish the flames.

The two people then leave the scene on push bikes. 

ACT Policing Detective Inspector Matthew Sprague said there were people in a gym upstairs from the barber shop at the time of the incident.

“There was a 24-hour gym that was directly above the premises and it had people in it at the time,” he said.

Inspector Sprague said the offenders were “incredibly lucky” they appeared to have escaped without serious injuries.

Police believe the attack was targeted and are investigating several lines of enquiry.

“To assist the investigation further, we are releasing the CCTV footage in a bid to identify these offenders,”’ Detective Inspector Sprague said.

“Police would like to speak to anyone who can identify the offenders from the CCTV footage, or who may have any information in relation to the incident.” 

Owner thinks attack was targeted 

Barber shop owner Yousif Hussein said the arsonists had caused an estimated $30,000 to the business, which had only opened earlier this year.

“When something like that happens, you’re just thinking, ‘Who’s doing this? Why is it happening? Is this going to affect my family? Is it going to affect me while I’m walking to my car after work?’.”

Mr Hussein said he had no idea why the business, which is part of a chain of barber shops, had been targeted.

“I just want answers, just to see why someone would do something like that,” he said.

“It looks like it was targeted – they didn’t steal anything.

“There were kids upstairs [at the gym] training at that time, about 20 of them, so if this place went on fire, I don’t know what then would have happened to those kids.”

Mr Hussein said he would like to see a greater police presence in suburban centres in Canberra to deter offenders.