But The Report May Be Outdated. New Details: Police First Thought Schuman Was Victim. Then Watched The Video…
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher | BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2026 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A day after BocaNewsNow.com reported that the arrest affidavit for Lotus resident Mitchell Schuman had still not been filed with the Palm Beach County Clerk of Courts more than ten days after his alleged crimes, the filing is now official. Well, kind of. It turns out the original version of the arrest report with a reduced charge was processed on Wednedsay. The current version of the charging document is apparently pending.
For those of you tuning in late: Mitchell Schuman is the 62-year-old man who seemingly threw a water bottle at a 12-year-old-boy because the boy was doing wheelies on an e-bike in Schuman’s community of million dollar homes — where the boy also lives. The boy not only performed wheelies, but apparently laughed at Schuman when Schuman fell from his bike. Schuman it seems couldn’t take the laughter and threw his water bottle — as adults always do. Schuman then is accused of taking the boy’s cell phone and preventing him from calling his parents or police. That’s when a roving vigilante gang of other middle-aged men living in Lotus happened upon the altercation and physically restrained the child, all while their harem of middle-aged women cheered them on. The video captured at the scene pretty much tells the story. It also suggests that maturity was not a requirement for New Yorkers and New Jersey exiles to purchase from G.L. Homes — the builder of Lotus.
The arrest report now filed with the clerk only lists the charge of battery — a charge that PBSO says will be dropped and replaced with aggravated battery and theft. The battery charge is for throwing the water bottle and hitting the child. The theft charge is for taking his phone. The affidavit reflecting these charges has not yet been processed. The State Attorney’s office continues to say it has not yet received the case file from police.
Meantime, the current arrest report filed shares new information: deputies first believed Mitchell Schuman when he claimed that he was the victim. His alleged injuries were photographed. Police soon realized, however, that they made a mistake. Wrote police in their report:
“I was tasked with taking photos of Mitchell Schuman and providing him with a Victim’s rights case information sheet. At the conclusion of the investigation, it was determined that Schuman was not a victim and is correctly listed as the arrestee. Schuman should not have been giving the option to elect victim’s rights, the exemption(s) marked on the case information form was marked in error and Schuman does not qualify for the selected exemptions. The photos were uploaded to evidence.com.”
Schuman, who was given a “notice to appear” in court and not booked into jail, remains free. His arraignment is set for May 7th, although that may change once the additional charges are filed. Meantime, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office confirms the case remains open as questions remain about the other adults seen in the video. BocaNewsNow.com has also learned that the Lotus Community canceled its disciplinary hearing for the adults involved — effectively taking no action against the homeowners captured on video restraining the child and preventing him from accessing his phone.
