- Rogers’ son, Max, was diagnosed with autism at age three.
- The football star and his wife Chloe Maxwell were left furious by the incident
- Both posted angry messages on social media calling for action.
Former NRL and rugby union star Mat Rogers has been furious after his autistic son Max had a prized possession stolen on the Gold Coast.
The former Cronulla Sharks and Wallabies star joined his wife, TV and radio presenter Chloe Maxwell, in appealing for help finding the “food” responsible for the theft in a series of outraged social media posts on Monday night.
Rogers, 48, told his 62,000 Instagram followers that Max’s $1,000 electric scooter had been stolen from outside a school and posted CCTV images of a man believed to be the thief responsible.
“My son @livingwithmax had his scooter stolen from the gym across the street from Miami High School by some little inmate!” she wrote.
‘That’s his independence and it’s been amazing for him to be able to go to school and work as well as see his friends!
“If any of you are idiots with a new scooter, I’d love to hear about it.”
Rogers then posted the CCTV footage accompanied by the following message: “Here’s the worm who thought it was okay to steal an autistic child’s scooter! Please report anything you see or hear.”
“There will be no vigilante justice, we just want our son’s scooter back! He’s devastated!”
Former NRL and Wallabies star Mat Rogers has been left outraged by the theft of one of his son Max’s most prized possessions.
Pictured: Mat Rogers with his son Max and wife Chloe Maxwell, who also reacted furiously to the threat on social media.
Pictured: Rogers’ first post about the theft. He later showed his Instagram followers CCTV footage of a man he claimed was responsible for stealing his son’s scooter.
Maxwell also posted the video on Instagram, writing: ‘Our son with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) had his electric scooter stolen today. It’s literally his independence.
‘Peek-a-boo, punk! We see you! We’ve got you on camera and it’s not hard to zoom in for facial recognition!’
She went on to say that she and Rogers “will be happy if it is returned” with no questions asked to the gym or school near where it was taken.
The couple have been open about coping with Max’s condition since he was diagnosed at three years old.
Rogers (pictured) and Maxwell set up the charity 4 ASD Kids in 2009 to help other Australian families who have a loved one with autism.
“There was a lot of fear and we didn’t know what the future held,” Rogers said, referring to the moment they learned their son was autistic.
‘It can be a pretty dark place in those early days, but there’s certainly a light at the end of the tunnel that we didn’t see.
“But it’s so bright and life is so wonderful, and we couldn’t imagine it any other way.
‘Max certainly needed help in the early days, but he’s flying now.’
Rogers and Maxwell founded the charity 4 ASD Kids in 2009 to help other Australian families who have a loved one with autism.
