Children's author pushed 12-year-old off his bike – then hurled it at him

One moment a 12-year-old was pedalling his bike through Whangārei’s CBD.

The next, 65-year-old children’s author Lucas Remmerswaal shoved him off; and hurled the bike on top of him.

Later in the day, Remmerswaal saw the boy again – he grabbed him by the throat and tried to take his phone.

Now the author and school presenter has failed in his bid to overturn a conviction for the offending, with a High Court judge agreeing his conduct was precisely the kind of behaviour schools should know about.

Remmerswaal has published several children’s books and travelled the country giving presentations in schools about financial literacy.

The former investment adviser also gained the backing of billionaire Warren Buffett to write a series of 13 books based on the habits that made Buffett billions.

At 3.30pm on April 7, 2025, Remmerswaal, also known as Lucas Socrates, was on Quality St in Whangārei as a 12-year-old rode his bike through.

Remmerswaal approached the victim and spoke to him before pushing him off his bike.

He then picked up the bike and threw it on the victim, pushing it down on him.

The victim managed to get up and rode off as Remmerswaal chased him briefly but lost him.

Remmerswaal then walked to the Salvation Army on Vine St and, while there, the victim rode past and noticed him.

The victim got out his phone and took a video.

On seeing this, Remmerswaal ran out of the store, and grabbed the victim’s throat while attempting to snatch his phone.

It was only when the public intervened that Remmerswaal let the boy go and walked away.

Remmerswaal pleaded guilty at the first opportunity to assault on a child under 14 and was convicted by Judge Peter Davey in February. He was ordered to pay reparation to the victim.

Remmerswaal appealed the decision to the High Court, which heard the case in June, and said the consequences of a conviction would affect his ability to teach in schools and obtain insurance for his boat.

He lost control

His lawyer Jarred Scott submitted his client had admittedly lost control, walked away from the situation and was provoked when the child began filming him.

Justice James Alexander MacGillivray said the facts did not support the submission.

Justice MacGillivray said Remmerswaal chased the victim and only broke off the second assault as he was attracting public attention.

“I also reject the submission that there is mitigation with respect to the second incident because the victim filming Mr Remmerswaal should be viewed as provocation,” Justice MacGillivray said.

“In context, it is reasonable to infer that the victim was filming Mr Remmerswaal for the purpose of identifying his assailant to make a complaint, and that Mr Remmerswaal was trying to get the phone off him to prevent him from doing that.”

Quality Street in Whangārei where Lucas Remmerswaal assaulted a young boy.

Counsel also submitted the consequence of a conviction would limit Remmerswaal’s ability to work in schools and be “out of all proportion to the seriousness of his offending”.

Justice MacGillivray said by law, a children’s worker must obtain a police vet to provide services and that vet would disclose the offending – whether he was convicted or not.

“Police vetting checks go beyond a simple police check for whether someone has a record of criminal convictions. The process discloses all police contact with the person vetted,” Justice MacGillivray said.

“I also agree with the District Court Judge’s conclusion that this is the sort of conviction that a school should properly be able to take into account in assessing whether or not to engage Mr Remmerswaal.”

Regarding his submissions about obtaining insurance for his boat, Justice MacGillivray said this was based only on Remmerswaal’s personal experience.

“It is far from obvious that a conviction for assault, for which no sentence was imposed other than the conviction itself and $500 reparation, would be a barrier to Mr Remmerswaal obtaining property insurance.

“As Mr Remmerswaal has failed to persuade me that he will suffer consequences, as a result of conviction, that would be out of all proportion to the gravity of the offending, his appeal fails at the threshold level.”

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.