A 22-year-old nursery worker has been sentenced to eight years in prison for carrying out what a judge described as sadistic abuse against 21 babies in her care at two London nurseries.
Roksana Lecka, from Hounslow, admitted seven counts of child cruelty and was convicted of 14 more at Kingston Crown Court in June.
Her crimes included pinching, scratching, pushing and slapping children, kicking a toddler in the face, and covering a crying baby’s mouth.
Parents described her as the worst kind of human during Friday’s sentencing, with one mother telling her: “They couldn’t speak, they couldn’t defend themselves they were totally helpless and you preyed upon them, another father said that if she had not been caught, she could have seriously injured or even killed.”
Lecka’s abuse was uncovered in June 2024 after she was suspended from the Montessori Riverside Nursery in Twickenham for pinching children and appearing flustered.
Police later reviewed CCTV footage showing her assaulting toddlers, some as young as 18 months, dozens of times a day. She was also caught pushing babies headfirst into cots and stepping on one child’s shoulder.
Judge Plaschkes KC said Lecka inflicted gratuitous violence on defenceless and innocent children,
He added, “Your conduct can properly be described as sadistic.”
The Metropolitan Police confirmed Lecka abused children between October 2023 and June 2024 at both Riverside and Little Munchkins Nursery in Hounslow.
During the trial, Lecka admitted smoking cannabis before shifts and claimed memory loss. Jurors, visibly shaken by the CCTV footage, were excused from future service for 10 years.
Detective Inspector Sian Hutchings praised parents for their extraordinary strength in reliving the abuse in court.
The CPS said Lecka exploited moments when colleagues were out of sight to inflict exceptional cruelty on vulnerable babies.
The Riverside Nursery has since closed.
