A 22-year-old nursery worker has been convicted of abusing 21 babies, including kicking one little boy in the face and stepping on his shoulder. Roksana Lecka, from Hounslow, west London, admitted seven counts of cruelty to a person under the age of 16 and was found guilty of another 14 by a jury at Kingston Crown Court, the Metropolitan Police said. Her crimes were discovered in June last year after she was sent home for pinching a number of children and appearing "flustered" at the Riverside Nursery in Twickenham, south-west London, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said. Solicitor Jemma Till from Irwin Mitchell said the families involved had been "traumatised". Detectives from the Met Police went through CCTV from the nursery that showed her pinching and scratching children under their clothes on their arms, legs and stomachs. She pinched several children dozens of times in the course of one day, causing them to cry and flinch away from her, the CPS said. In one incident she kicked a little boy in the face several times. She was also seen to push babies headfirst over cots and cover a toddler's mouth when he started to cry. The Metropolitan Police said she had abused children at two nurseries between October 2023 and June 2024 - one of the counts related to Little Munchkins in Hounslow, with the remainder linked to the Riverside Nursery in Twickenham, which has since closed. Det Sgt Geoff Boye said: "Footage showed Lecka carrying out multiple assaults on the children in her care which included repeatedly pinching and grabbing children, dropping babies into their cots and on one occasion, she delivered several kicks to a young boy to the face and stepped on his shoulder." Lecka told police she smoked cannabis before her shifts, and at one point was seen vaping a metre away from a young baby. Det Insp Sian Hutchings said: "These families left their children in Lecka's care, trusting her to protect their children as well as the other staff at the nurseries clearly did. "The footage of her offences against defenceless children was disturbing. "I would like to praise the strength of the victims' families who have had to sit in court and watch footage of the abuse which Lecka inflicted on their children." Lecka worked at Riverside Nursery between January and June 2024, with a number of parents reporting unusual injuries and bruising in March and May that year. Senior crown prosecutor Gemma Burns said Lecka had "shown exceptional cruelty" to the babies. "No parent should have to fear leaving their child in the care of professionals, but the sheer scale of her abuse is staggering," she added. She will be sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on 26 September. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London onSoundsand follow BBC London onFacebook,XandInstagram. Send your story ideas tohello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk
Nursery worker convicted of abusing 21 babies
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Roksana Lecka, a 22-year-old nursery worker from Hounslow, has been convicted for the abuse of 21 infants, including severe acts of violence. At Kingston Crown Court, Lecka admitted to seven counts of cruelty towards children under the age of 16 and was found guilty of an additional 14 counts. Her abusive behavior came to light in June 2024 when she was sent home for pinching several children and displaying signs of distress while working at Riverside Nursery in Twickenham. The Metropolitan Police uncovered the extent of her offenses through CCTV footage, which revealed her repeatedly pinching, scratching, and physically assaulting the children in her care. One particularly alarming incident involved her kicking a young boy in the face multiple times and stepping on his shoulder. Reports indicated that she also pushed infants headfirst into their cots and covered the mouth of a toddler who began to cry, demonstrating a pattern of alarming behavior during her shifts.
Lecka's abusive actions occurred at two different nurseries between October 2023 and June 2024, with the Riverside Nursery being the primary site of her offenses, which has since been closed down. Families of the affected children have expressed their trauma, with many parents noticing unusual injuries and bruising on their children in the months leading to the discovery of the abuse. Lecka admitted to using cannabis before her shifts and was seen vaping near the children, raising further concerns about her professionalism and judgment. The severity of her actions prompted strong condemnation from law enforcement and legal authorities, with Detective Sergeant Geoff Boye highlighting the disturbing nature of the footage depicting her assaults. Lecka's sentencing is scheduled for September 26, where the court will address the significant impact of her actions on the vulnerable children and their families.
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