Nursery worker jailed for 'sadistic' abuse of 21 babies in London

A 22-year-old nursery worker has been sentenced to eight years after being convicted of the "sadistic" abuse of 21 babies, including pinching and pushing children and kicking one little boy in the face.

- Alexandra Topping

Roksana Lecka, from Hounslow in west London, admitted to seven counts of cruelty to a person under the age of 16 and was convicted of another 14 counts by a jury at Kingston crown court in June.

Parents spoke about the devastation caused by her "sickening" crimes, calling her the "worst kind of human".

During a harrowing campaign of abuse in two nurseries in London, Lecka pinched, scratched and pushed children, making them flinch and cry. On one occasion she kicked a little boy in the face several times and stepped on his shoulder.

Looking at the abuser, one mother said she had preyed on "innocent and vulnerable" children. "They couldn't speak, they couldn't defend themselves and they couldn't tell us as parents that something had happened to them," she said.