Articles by Lane Nichols

National

'You take the rap': Cops found $12k in stolen Highlanders mouthguards in Akl flat
Tuesday, 24 March 2026, 7:22am
“You take the rap for everything so I don’t have to go to jail tonight.” Miriana Shirley Emery was speaking to an associate...
Crime

DNA breakthrough links serial rapist Malcolm Rewa to horrific 1988 teen attack
Friday, 27 February 2026, 1:58pm
Warning: This story contains distressing content and deals with sexual assault A teenager who was raped by serial sexual...
National

Auckland skydiving firm admits charge linked to fatal mid-air collision
Tuesday, 24 February 2026, 7:09am
An Auckland skydiving company has entered an 11th-hour guilty plea after the death of a British skydiver blown more than...
Auckland

Embattled Teaching Council CEO resigns after release of two critical reports
Monday, 23 February 2026, 12:48pm
Embattled Teaching Council chief executive Lesley Hoskin has resigned. The announcement was made today by the Crown agency’s...
National

'Disinhibited': Judge grilled about alcohol consumption after fracas at NZ First function
Monday, 16 February 2026, 3:07pm
A sitting judge accused of misbehaving at a NZ First fundraising event has been cross-examined by a special counsel about...
National

Judicial conduct hearing: Judge David McNaughton refers to possible ‘excessive drinking’ by KC lawyer at Auckland’s Northern Club
Friday, 13 February 2026, 4:54pm
A judge who initially refused to engage with special counsel in a Judicial Conduct Panel considering the future of another...
Auckland

'I could smell alcohol': Govt minister gives evidence at judge's conduct hearing about celebrity doctor
Thursday, 12 February 2026, 2:34pm
A Cabinet minister has described a “particularly hostile” encounter with a celebrity doctor at a NZ First event in Auckland,...
Auckland

'Got lucky': Couple who received $158,000 in banking error claimed cash windfall was online casino win
Tuesday, 3 February 2026, 8:40pm
An Auckland couple who accidentally received $158,000 in an account transfer error in what they labelled a “blessing from...
National

'Felt like rape': Sportsman avoids jail after duping sex workers with fake payments, forged HIV test
Thursday, 29 January 2026, 7:19am
A man who tricked three prostitutes by faking online banking records showing he’d paid them thousands of dollars for sex...
Auckland

Legal profession mourns 'shining star' after young lawyer's Coromandel death
Wednesday, 21 January 2026, 2:24pm
A gifted young Auckland lawyer who worked on high-profile criminal appeals involving Mark Lundy and Gail Maney has been named...
National

'Demonic serpents': Probe launched into exorcism claims at embattled Auckland school
Sunday, 11 January 2026, 10:03am
An investigation is under way into claims “deliverance and exorcism” rituals to rid students of “demonic serpents” were performed...
National

6yo's tonsil surgery death: Officials didn't do enough to support grieving family, review finds
Wednesday, 7 January 2026, 10:02am
A high-level review into the death of a child who collapsed at home and stopped breathing after routine tonsil surgery has...
National

Kiwi woman accused of smuggling $5.5m of meth in checked luggage at Auckland Airport
Tuesday, 6 January 2026, 1:44pm
A woman charged with drug smuggling was allegedly caught with enough methamphetamine stuffed in her checked luggage to supply...
National

‘Gentle giant’: Friends remember Auckland bus stabbing victim as alleged killer appears in court
Wednesday, 10 December 2025, 3:09pm
A man slain in an “unprovoked” Auckland bus attack has been remembered as a “gentle giant” as his alleged killer appeared...
National

Teaching Council chair gives update on investigations at embattled agency, CEO remains on leave
Tuesday, 9 December 2025, 7:16am
The chair of the Teaching Council has provided an update on a series of investigations underway at the embattled agency but...
National

Nearly half of drivers in alleged VTNZ bribery scandal fail new licence tests
Thursday, 4 December 2025, 8:09am
Nearly half the drivers compelled to resit practical tests amid allegations Auckland VTNZ officers accepted bribes to pass...
National

Tenants fought for lives after 'soldier' stormed house in Akl homicide case
Wednesday, 26 November 2025, 7:31am
Graphic content warning: This story discusses extreme violence A woman charged with being a party to murder after her boyfriend...
National

'Furious and frenzied attack': Murder trial shown graphic footage of dying home invader
Tuesday, 25 November 2025, 7:19am
Graphic content warning: This story discusses extreme violence Graphic CCTV footage and audio recordings of a man dying...
National

Teaching Council probe sparked by claims public funds spent with firm run by CEO's husband
Thursday, 20 November 2025, 7:11am
A probe into conflict-of-interest allegations at the Teaching Council was sparked by a whistle blower’s claims the agency...
National

NZ's oldest school takes Ministry of Education to court to keep hostels open
Thursday, 6 November 2025, 10:21am
An Auckland school ordered to close its boarding hostels urgently amid student safety concerns is going to court to keep...
National

NZ's oldest school ordered to urgently close hostels due to 'harmful incidents'
Monday, 3 November 2025, 11:05am
The Ministry of Education has ordered the country’s oldest school to close its hostels at the end of this week after further...
Auckland

Man in military fatigues stabbed in jugular as tenancy dispute boiled over into murder, Crown alleges
Wednesday, 29 October 2025, 9:53am
Simmering tensions between a landlord and her two tenants boiled over into murder when a hired man dressed in military fatigues...
Crime

Hit-and-run driver who left dog walkers for dead identified as Auckland company director
Monday, 27 October 2025, 10:33am
A man who ran down two women walking their dogs then drove off without stopping to check if they were even alive can now...
Auckland

Embattled Auckland school announces hostel closures amid safety, culture concerns
Monday, 20 October 2025, 10:49am
An embattled Auckland school has announced the closure of its hostels amid reports of violence and “ongoing concerns about...