In February last year, former Essendon star Ricky Olarenshaw celebrated his 50th birthday with a Playboy-themed party, surrounded by scantily clad women and AFL mates.

Dressed as Playboy editor-in-chief Hugh Hefner in a smoking jacket and sailor hat, with his wife Nitha beaming by his side, the so-called 'King of Bali' was in his element.

"Thanks to everyone for making an effort to dress up and look all sexy," he told the guests.

The Seminyak substitute for the Playboy mansion was the Flame Spa — now the source of a criminal investigation, international scandal and bitter dispute.

Last month, Bali police raided the spa and uncovered what they allege is evidence the venue was engaged in prostitution.

They say the raid uncovered a therapist in a "completely naked condition," and allege that further investigations revealed therapists offering a range of sexual services.

The website for Flame Spa says: "Our service is more than just a sensual massage; it is an erotic experience," while the business's Facebook page promises "60 minutes of body-to-body massage, culminating in an eruptive massage technique that'll leave you feeling 100 per cent."

Prostitution is illegal in Indonesia and promoting or selling it can carry jail sentences of up to 12 years.

Flame Spa's website says "we strictly prohibit sexual intercourse" and its HR manager insisted to the ABC there was no sex involved at the spa.

Nevertheless, five people — all women — were arrested.

Among them was former AFL player Ricky Olarenshaw's now estranged wife, Balinese social media influencer and apparent owner of Flame, Sarnanitha — also known as Nitha.

But since the arrest, the plot has thickened, with Nitha's lawyer Donny Tri Istiqomah claiming his client is the victim of dodgy police work, exploitation and threats by another Australian man to bring in "very powerful people". 

'There is an amicable way to settle this or we escalate the war'

Donny claims his client was only ever the "on-paper" owner of Flame Spa and that the real owners were her husband Ricky, along with three other Australian men.

The Spa's HR manager Okky Wirtayasa told the ABC this was always his understanding too.

The ABC has also been provided with photographs that appear to show two of the men with piles of cash that Donny says is payment of dividends as well as dividend receipts with their names on it. 

Neither of the men in the photos is Olarenshaw. 

Donny says that in August, Ricky and Nitha separated far from amicably, and the Australian business partners got spooked.

In a text exchange seen by the ABC, one of the partners appears to threaten Nita.

"Sell me your shares or we close it down forever and jail all of you," the message reads.

"There is an amicable way to settle this or we escalate the war. Your choice.

"Think for your kid's sake don't do silly things."

In a separate group message, the same man tells her he has "the backing of some very powerful people". 

Not long after these messages were sent, Donny says Flame Spa was raided.

"I don't understand the police — they're aware that Nitha was exploited but why did they still hold the attack against her?" he told the ABC.

He also claims two of the alleged Australian owners, who were not Olarenshaw, were present during the raid and that when staff wouldn't turn off CCTV cameras as instructed, police turned them upwards so the raid wouldn't be caught on camera.

Donny has now taken his concerns over the police actions to the Internal Affairs Division at the National Police Headquarters in Bali, and reported the Australians allegedly involved to national immigration authorities.

A spokesperson for Bali Police, Senior Commissioner Jansen Avitus, told the ABC the investigative process was ongoing and to "be patient and wait for the legal certainty of the cases."

"We've conducted a fair investigation, the legal process is ongoing and surely legal certainty will be achieved soon," he told the ABC.

"If they found an oddity in the process, there's a procedure to report that. Bring all the evidence and report it to Police Internal Affairs.

"A top lawyer would be able to prove their client is innocent and free them of all charges and they can do that later in court."

The ABC has attempted to contact all four men allegedly involved and is not suggesting any of them including Ricky Olarenshaw were aware of the alleged illegal activity or were co-owners of the spa.

Separate Australian couple also in custody

The raids also resulted in the arrest of Australian couple Michael and Lynley Le Grand, at a separate spa, the Pink Palace.

According to a Bali police spokesperson, officers seized items as evidence, including lingerie, condoms and massage oil, and allege that the venue was offering sex for paying customers.

Police also allege one staff member employed at the spa was 17, and they are investigating whether to prosecute the owners under Indonesia's child protection laws.

A police spokesperson claimed the Pink Palace was turning over between $95,000 and $285,000 a year.

"The modus operandi is to offer massage services with various sensations in the Pink Palace, starting from 1 million to 2.5 million rupiah [$95 to $236]," alleged Police Grand Commissioner Adjutant I Ketut Suarnaya, the deputy director of the Bali police's Criminal Investigation Directorate.

An Instagram account for the business described the massage venue as a "blissful sanctuary of relaxation," but the account has now been taken down.

Lynley Le Grand was injured in the 2002 terrorist bombing attacks in Kuta and told the ABC on the bombing's 20th anniversary in 2022 that she had since made the island her home and was raising her children in Bali.