Nursery worker ‘filmed pinching, punching and grabbing 23 babies’

Rosana Lecka, 22, has admitted two counts of child cruelty and denies 21 more

A childcare worker was allegedly caught on CCTV pinching, punching and grabbing babies at the £1,900-a-month nursery where she worked.

Rosana Lecka, 22, is accused of assaulting or ill-treating 23 infants over a six-month period at the Riverside Nursery in Twickenham, south-west London.

Prosecutors said the footage showed Lecka pinching two children, causingone to cry, and grabbing one by the back of the neck, according to court proceedings reported by the BBC.

The court heard some children were found with scratches on their face and neck, while some had pinch marks on their inner legs and stomach.

Jurors were told that on one occasion, a colleague allegedly saw Lecka pinching one boy’s legs, prompting the headteacher to review CCTV, which showed the 22-year-old also pinching the child’s nose, wrist and mouth, according to Sky News.

Riverside Nursery uses the Montessori method of teaching, in which children are encouraged to spend more time on activities that interest them.

The court heard no safeguarding issues were raised when Lecka applied for the job, with references from another nursery and two families of children she had babysat.

But prosecutors said she was sent home one day after acting ‘almost as if she was in a daze’.

Lecka has admitted two charges and denies 21 further offences. She also faces another charge of cruelty at another location.

The trial continues.

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