A Queensland father has launched a public plea for financial assistance two years after a police officer tackled him during what he says was an attempt to help officers track car thieves, leaving him with a fractured spine and broken ribs.
Samuel Prendergast, a Browns Plains tradie and father, was at the Grand Plaza Shopping Centre in Logan in early 2023 when he says he pointed out an exit in an underground car park to officers pursuing a stolen vehicle. Police later mistook him for one of the suspects and tackled him to the ground, he has said. Prendergast fractured the L4 vertebra and broke two ribs and has been unable to return to his flooring business full time.
Prendergast has described the encounter to Australian media and on his GoFundMe page, saying officers punched him, pushed his face into the floor and kneed his back and ribs. He told A Current Affair at the time: "I can remember he was running up, then he punched me in the head, pushed me over, started pushing my face into the floor, then he was kneeing me, and kneeing me into my ribs on the back." On his fundraising page he wrote that specialists have now told him he will never be able to install floors again, the trade he has practiced for years.
Prendergast said he had attended the shopping centre on the way to a birthday dinner with his wife and daughter and had been shirtless in the humid conditions. He told reporters he believes his appearance may have contributed to the mistaken identity.
The injuries forced Prendergast off work and into a prolonged recovery. He said attempts to resume his flooring business resulted in two re-injuries. The family faces monthly mortgage repayments of about A$2,800, car finance of A$650 and medical costs not covered by Medicare, he said. Prendergast launched a GoFundMe with a stated goal of A$3,000 to help bridge immediate financial gaps while he retrains for other work.
Prendergast also said he sought support through government channels but had been rejected. "Victims Assist Australia rejected my claim, saying I 'wasn't a victim'," he wrote on the fundraising page. He added that he does not have total and permanent disability insurance through his superannuation and described legal proceedings as ongoing.
Queensland Police said at the time that body-worn camera footage would be reviewed. A force spokesperson said: "First-response policing is dynamic and fast-paced by nature and officers immediately cordoned the area off. During the search a man was detained by police and subsequently released. The man left the scene without providing police his details." The force has not released further public updates on disciplinary or legal outcomes related to the incident.
Independent reviews of police use of force often rely on body-worn camera footage and internal investigations. Advocates for victims of police contact say timely access to compensation and welfare support can be critical when an injured person is the primary earner for a household.
Prendergast told reporters he had always worked to provide for his family and had not previously asked for help. "But with no income and mounting bills, we're at risk of losing everything we've worked for," he wrote on the GoFundMe page. He said donations would be used to cover immediate expenses and to fund retraining in another field.
The case adds to public scrutiny in Australia of police interactions with civilians and of the processes available to people who claim injury during policing incidents. Two years on, Prendergast is seeking financial and practical support while pursuing legal avenues and recovery from injuries that he says have permanently altered his capacity to work.