BREAKING NEWS Polish worker, 22, at £1,900-a-month Montessori nursery is found GUILTY of attacking 21 toddlers in her care
A worker at a £1,900 a month Montessori nursery has today been found guilty of assaulting 22 toddlers.
Roksana Lecka, 22, has been convicted of 'badly harming' 21 infants at the Riverside Nursery in Twickenham, south-west London, last year, and a further charge from a previous workplace.
She admitted seven counts of child cruelty, including kicking a boy in the face and punching a girl in the side, justifying this behaviour by claiming she was sleep deprived from smoking cannabis all night with her boyfriend.
Lecka denied 17 other similar charges but a jury today found her unanimously guilty.
One child was repeatedly kicked in the face by Lecka who even punched a baby after dragging her out of a cot.
Horrified parents first began photographing and reporting unexplained injuries on their children's tiny bodies as early as March last year.
Staff also noticed the children had been scratched and bruised and Lecka was suspended on June 28, 2024.
Detectives watched hours of CCTV and Lecka was charged with 24 counts of child cruelty.
Parents had been compiling evidence of the abuse of their children for months leading up to her being charged, Kingston Crown Court heard.
They watched in horror in court as jurors were shown some of Lecka's sadistic attacks.
Lecka admitted seven of the charges against her but denied a further 17.
Today after nine hours and 53 minutes, jurors convicted her of 14 of the remaining 17 child cruelty counts and acquitted her of three.
Parents in the public gallery wept as the verdicts were read out.
There were gasps from jurors and weeping parents in the public gallery as horrifying footage of Lecka's attacks on toddlers, who were left writhing in agony, was shown during her trial.
But the 22-year-old, who moved to Britain from Katowice in southern Poland when she was three, explained away each sickening act of violence with a chilling nonchalance.
Giving evidence in a smart black suit jacket over a black top, her blonde hair tied back in a neat ponytail, she claimed that an alleged pinch to a boy's stomach was simply a tender hug.
A rough yank on a boy's hair was a 'ruffle with my fingers.'
A series of violent jabs to another toddler's stomach that left his abdomen black and blue were just 'playful pokes to the side,' she insisted.
A baby Lecka smacked twice around the face while puffing on her vape was actually only crying because 'she was distressed having just woken up from a nap.'
And a sickening moment when she threw a girl onto a mat had merely been some 'rough handling,' she declared.
The former beauty worker changed several pleas to guilty just before her trial begun, having been shown enhanced CCTV that irrefutably illustrated her crimes.
She desperately sought to rationalise her behaviour with a series of pathetic excuses, including that she would get 'moody' if she could not smoke her vape at work, did not have enough sleep, was still feeling the effects of cannabis smoked the night before and had been suffering from period cramps.
Her own evidence was damning of the chaotic environment at Riverside Nursery, part of a prestigious group of educational institutions run by Dukes Education.
Lecka admitted she hadn't bothered to complete her online safeguarding modules, and staff turnover was so high that workers were constantly training others while on the job.
She said she would frequently take toilet breaks to smoke a vape she kept in her bra, which she was seen on CCTV smoking next to children, and would take cannabis with her boyfriend – sometimes before work.
Despite this she was praised by management as a model employee and recalled: 'They had experience with people my age or younger who wouldn't stick to the job or do it properly but [head teacher] Noor one day called me into her office and said I was doing really well, she's really proud of me.
'She had even bought me pink roses.
'She said if I continued to do so well she would sort it for me to do Level 3 childcare courses if it was something I wanted.'
That she was held in such high esteem goes some way to explain why staff were for so long unable to link her to the horrific injuries suffered by children in their care – injuries that for months were explained away to parents as innocuous accidents.
As consultant paediatrician Dr Stephen Rose told the trial, they should have recognised that wounds including bruised earlobes, torsos and thighs must have been caused deliberately.
'Ears do not get injured or bruised accidentally…if it is a bruise it was caused non-accidentally or deliberately inflicted,' he said.
'The side of the torso is relatively protected by the arm, so it is not an area that is bruised accidentally.'
Dr Rose added that marks on a child's thigh had likely been caused on purpose because toddlers who fall backwards land on their bottoms, not their thighs.
Lecka, who has two younger siblings, was supported throughout the trial by her mother.
The Polish national, who studied beauty at Kingston College and worked as a babysitter, barmaid and at a laser removal clinic before getting her job at the nursery, will be sentenced at a later date.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
15 minutes ago
- The Sun
Update on Lioness goalie Khiara Keating's hippy crack case after she was hauled to court
LIONESS goalie Khiara Keating will face no further action after she was hauled to court accused of a drugs offence. The Manchester City star, 20, was charged with possession of nitrous oxide canisters. She and her mum appeared at Manchester magistrates court last summer when they pleaded not guilty. They were facing a trial in November and were due at a hearing last week. But the case has been dropped owing to insufficient evidence. At an earlier hearing, Isaac Mirza, defending, said Keating was involved in a car crash in June last year. Two police officers found nitrous oxide in her vehicle but Keating and her mum denied that it belonged to them. Nitrous oxide was categorised as a Class C drug in 2023. Possession, where a person intends to inhale it for a psychoactive effect, is an offence. But the gas can be used for legitimate reasons such as pain relief in labour. Keating, from Manchester, became the youngest player to win the Women's Super League Golden Glove in 2023/24, and will feature in next month's Euros. Ella Toone breaks down in tears as Lionesses star receives message from teammate's dad ahead of Euro 2025 1
The Sun
16 minutes ago
- The Sun
Miss Universe finalist shares pics of horror injuries as ex who called her ‘stupid c***' in text is cleared of assault
A MISS Universe finalist has shared pics of her horror injuries after her ex was cleared of assault. Chloe Othen, 34, had been invited over to Ricky Lawrence's home in Knightsbridge, London, when "all hell broke loose", a court heard. 8 8 8 8 The Miss Universe finalist claimed she was pinned down by Lawrence and accused him of punching and biting her on her legs, arm and shoulder, jurors heard. Chloe, an Instagram influencer with 284,000 followers, said she "feared she would die" at the 33-year-old's £1.5million apartment. But Lawrence, who runs Lawrence & Winslade bespoke tailors in Knightsbridge, denied the charges and was cleared of assault causing actual bodily harm after an eight-day retrial. Whisky merchant Lawrence was accused of punching Chloe multiple times but was found not guilty having insisted a love rival beat her up. He claimed her current partner Hatton Garden jeweller Bora Guccuk, 41, was responsible for Chloe's injuries. Now, Chloe has taken to Instagram with her latest post referencing the ordeal. Horrifying pictures of her injuries were uploaded by the influencer along with a statement. Chloe said: "I trusted the justice system. It failed me. "All it takes is an implication of doubt to devalue the overall felt like I was on trial. "This is happening far too often — not just to me, but to survivors everywhere. The courts are being used to retraumatise victims, not protect them. "I spoke my truth. I fought for justice. And I was let down. Moment vile woman caught kicking dog on neighbour's doorbell camera "We need change - because justice shouldn't be this easy to escape." The court was told the pair had been in a relationship for around six months between December 2021 and May 2022 but remained "on and off" after it ended. Giving evidence, Chloe described their relationship as "narcissistic" adding: "You are addicted to the highs and lows. It is euphoric." During her evidence, the influencer said: "I genuinely thought I'm going to die." She told the court she was left with six bite marks and as a result she needed a tetanus shot and antibiotics. Chloe later went to hospital where it was found one of the bite marks on her neck had "turned septic", it was said. Jurors previously heard a slew of messages were recovered from Lawrence's phone that were sent just before the accusations of assault. He told her: 'I'll do everything in my power to f**k you up. "You're a lying little w****, you said you were coming to me an hour-and-a-half ago." Chloe also described Lawrence as "crazy" and claimed he pursued her while she was at the Cannes film festival and in Mykonos with friends. CHARGES CLEARED Smartly dressed in a grey suit, bearded Lawrence appeared emotional as the unanimous verdict was announced as he looked over to supporters at the back of the courtroom. Giving evidence in court, Lawrence claimed Chloe had confided in him that her boyfriend Guccuk was violent towards her - and that at one point he had seen her with a red mark on her face. Lawrence claimed: "She had a mark on the side of her face. It looked like a footprint. It was a round mark. It was a red round mark. "She always described the relationship as violent. She said he used to beat her up, things of that nature." Asked by Tom Wyatt, defending, whether he had ever bitten anyone, Lawrence replied: "Absolutely not. I'd never even had a fight". The defence lawyer said no one was suggesting Chloe was not assaulted but claimed Guccuk was responsible for her injuries. Mr Wyatt added: "She couldn't risk losing the man who paid for her lifestyle." Francesca Allen, 28, who appeared on series five of Love Island, dated Lawrence in 2018 and wrote a character statement as part of Lawrence's defence. Following his initial arrest, Lawrence had wept and said: "This is ridiculous. She's ruining my life. I asked her to leave." Lawrence later gave police a prepared statement in which he confirmed his relationship with Ms Othen began in January 2022 and ended four months later "because she aborted my child". 8 8 8
The Independent
18 minutes ago
- The Independent
Police issue appeal five years after double murder at lockdown party
Murder squad detectives have made a fresh appeal for information on the fifth anniversary of a double killing at a lockdown party. Cheriff Tall, 21, and father of three Abayomi 'Junior' Ajose, 36, were shot dead at a 'spontaneous' party attended by 400 people in Moss Side, Manchester, in the early hours of June 21 2020. The event, with a DJ and PA system, took place in a car park in the middle of a block of flats hours after a Black Lives Matter protest. Detectives are appealing for information if witnesses know or saw someone there who was wearing a black Icon cap with a white logo and a white Nike Air T-shirt with a small black logo over the left side of the chest. A £50,000 reward remains available for key information that leads to the discovery and conviction of the killer, who police believe is from Birmingham. Detective Chief Inspector Neil Higginson, from Greater Manchester Police's (GMP) Major Incident Team, said: 'This year marks five years since Cheriff and Junior went out to a party but sadly never returned home to their loved ones. Their families have been left devastated by their loss, and they deserve justice. 'We will never be able to bring back their beloved Cheriff and Junior, but we can see that their killer is brought to justice. We need members of the community to get in touch and help us with some key information. 'There were hundreds of people in the car park that night and we are sure that there are people who saw the incident, even if it was just part of it. 'However, there has been a reluctance for witnesses to come forward with information. 'I understand that people might be scared, and that is normal given what has happened, but there is a range of measures that we can put in place to keep witnesses safe. 'Evidence can be given on video or behind a screen. It could also be that we could apply to the courts for the witness to be anonymous if there are grounds to do so. 'I'd just ask for you to come forward and we can have an honest chat about what we can do, as you don't have to commit to giving a statement in the first instance. 'The person responsible for these murders we believe is from Birmingham. He is not a member of the local Moss Side community, and he should not be protected. 'Anyone who comes forward in this case is not a 'grass' for helping the police, they are simply doing what is right for two families who have had their loved ones taken from them in awful circumstances. No one deserves that. 'When we have worked together in the past, we have achieved great results and if we work together again, we can get justice for Cheriff and Junior. It's not too late to do the right thing.' Anyone with information, however small or insignificant, should contact GMP in confidence on 0161 856 2035, quoting incident number 221 of 21/06/20. Alternatively, reports can be made in confidence to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. Information, including pictures and videos, can be uploaded anonymously to the Major Incident Public Portal for Operation Tarnbrook at
