Willem Powerfish: Social media prankster in court for abusive tirade at Tweed Heads water police

A social media prankster filmed himself unleashing an abusive tirade at a water police officer, later uploading the vision to his online following of more than one million people. Find out his explanation.

Social media prankster Willem Powerfish who has accumulated more than one million followers on his accounts has returned to court after a fiery exchange with a boating safety officer.

A social media prankster who has accumulated more than one million followers on his accounts has returned to court after a fiery exchange with a boating safety officer.

Willem Ungerman, 37, better known to his followers as Willem Powerfish, faced Tweed Heads Local Court on Wednesday, November 16, for an array of charges including refusing to comply with and using abusive language to a boating safety officer, failing to present his boating licence and sounding his vessel’s siren without navigation purposes at Terranora Creek at Tweed Heads in December 2021.

Willem Ungermann, aka Willem Powerfish, outside Tweed Heads Local Court on Monday, February 8, 2021. Picture: Liana Boss

Police facts state a boating safety officer was conducting a patrol of Terranora Creek where they observed a white open runabout vessel with a giant inflatable toy in an area where water skiing and towing are permitted.

The officer asked Powerfish, who was with another man, to produce his boating licence and life jackets, to which he replied “We’re a couple of blue fins … we’ve got bad backs.

Powerfish then took out his phone and started recording the incident.

While speaking to his mobile phone, Powerfish said, “Dogs are always breathing down my neck. I’m just out here trying to thrash a couple of blokes in the mangroves, jack ’em off and have a good time, and we have country Joe over here trying to ruin my time”.

The Powerfish during one of his pranks. Picture: Instagram/ justaddwaterphotography.

The officer replied “You’ll be hearing more about it. I’m not going to waste my time”.

Court documents state Powerfish then said, “Yeah, go on. Jerk yourself off in the mangroves because I ain’t doing it today. Yeah, Jackass. Have a man. Get a man up ya”.

On May 11 2022, Powerfish uploaded footage of the incident in a video titled Powerfish v Maritime to his many followers on Instagram and Facebook.

Before the incident engaging with the boat safety officer, he says to the camera, “F**k me … I don’t know whether he wants to book me or whether he wants to suck me off.”

“Don’t let em tell you what you can and can’t do. Tell em to get f**cked, they don’t own the waterways, your johnson does,” he said.

On June 3 2022, Powerfish attended the Tweed Maritime complex.

When questioned about the incident by Tweed Maritime police, Powerfish said he had a panic episode during the interaction, which led to the behaviour. Picture: Supplied.

When questioned about the incident by Tweed Maritime police, Powerfish said he had a panic episode during the interaction, which led to the behaviour.

Powerfish said, “Sometimes I have episodes where I don’t realise what I’m doing; if it’s not the panic disorder, it’s something else”, court documents state.

The footage was played to Powerfish and about halfway through, he pushed the laptop away and said, “I don’t want to watch it anymore, it’s disgusting”.

Powerfish is accused of abusive language to a boating safety officer, failing to present his boating licence and sounding his vessel’s siren without navigation purposes at Terranora Creek in December 2021.

“It doesn’t make me feel good … I take everything on the chin … I f**ked up … I can’t justify what I’ve done, said or my actions,” he said according to police facts.

“I’ve been diagnosed with a number of things … I can’t deny what happened because it’s on video. When I watch the video, I feel like a piece of s**t, he’s a normal bloke”

The court heard Powerfish had suffered anxiety and depression since he was 17 and had been changing medications which contributed to the panic episode.

Magistrate Geoff Dunlevy convicted Powerfish to a community corrections order of two years, fines totalling $3800 and 100 hours of community service work after breaking his initial three-year conditional release order.

Following court, Powerfish took to social media to say: