British nursery worker admits sexually assaulting children and filming abuse

By Caitlin Danaher and Issy Ronald, CNN

London (CNN) — A British nursery worker from London has pleaded guilty to 26 offenses against children, including nine counts of sexual assault, in what the Metropolitan Police has described as “one of the most harrowing and complex child sexual abuse investigations” undertaken by the force.

Vincent Chan, a 45-year-old man living in north London, was also found guilty of the taking and making of indecent images of children, police said in a statement on Wednesday. He will be sentenced on January 23, according to PA Media.

“The offences include five counts of sexual assault of a child by penetration, four counts of sexual assault of a child by touching,” the police said, adding that Chan also pleaded guilty to 11 counts of taking indecent photographs of a child and six counts of making indecent photographs.

Some of those images depicted the most severe category of abuse and one woman in the public gallery cried as the charges were read out, PA reported.

Chan was initially arrested in June 2024 after a member of staff at a London nursery reported that the man had been capturing disturbing footage of the children on a work device.

After seizing 28 digital devices, forensic teams uncovered “substantial amounts of indecent images and videos of children,” that led to Chan, who worked at the nursery for almost seven years, being formally charged with child sexual offenses in September.

In total, 69 devices were retrieved and analyzed by police officers as part of this investigation, which found Chan had been using a nursery-issued iPad to record videos depicting “sexual contact offending” against children within the nursery while he was responsible for minding them, police said.

He distorted the footage by adding superimpositions and music for comedic purposes, and shared stills with his colleagues, according to police.

The lead investigator on the case, Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, said Chan’s offenses spanned years, “revealing a calculated and predatory pattern of abuse.”

“He infiltrated environments that should have been safe havens for children, exploiting the trust of families and the wider community to conceal his actions and prey on the most vulnerable,” Basford added.

Investigators have currently identified four young children as victims, and their parents or guardians have been visited and informed by specially trained local officers.

Leigh Day, a law firm representing some of the families who attended the nursery at the time, issued a statement from the parents. “As parents we are still trying to process the sickening discovery that our children were subjected to despicable abuse by Vincent Chan at the nursery,” the statement said.

“In admitting the charges, we are spared the prospect of hearing Vincent Chan’s crimes at the nursery described in graphic detail in a trial. We trust the judge to pass the strongest sentence to fit the crimes Vincent Chan has committed against young children, innocent victims who could not fight back,” the statement added.

The nursery in West Hampstead, north London, where Chan worked has since closed.

“Our thoughts are first and foremost with the children and families affected, and we are committed to offering support to them during this incredibly difficult time,” a spokesperson for the nursery, which was a branch of childcare provider Bright Horizons, told PA Media.

“Whilst this individual’s actions came to light after a colleague raised concerns and followed our whistle-blowing procedures to report him, we fully accept that the evidence shows the individual was able to commit these crimes despite our safeguarding measures.”

“In light of this, we have commissioned an external expert in this field to undertake a full review of our safeguarding practices.”

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