Teenage nursery worker jailed for raping three-year-old boy
a young man nursery worker The toddler’s distraught father has been jailed for ten years for raping a three-year-old boy as he attacked the “cold, sinister and calculating” criminal.
Thomas WallerGuildford Crown Court heard the 18-year-old targeted boys in his care during the few days he was able to supervise children going to the toilet.
He had previously been convicted of raping a three-year-old child and sexually assaulting another a few weeks after he started working at a workplace. nursery July 2024 in Surrey.
Sentencing him to 15 years in a young offenders institution on Friday, Judge Claire Harden-Frost said he must serve 10 years of the sentence in custody and five years on licence, and said it was “heartbreaking” that the children’s parents felt responsible for what happened.
A nursery staff member told police Waller was left alone in the bathroom with one of the children, known as Child D, after lunch in August. The court heard officers later found his DNA on the boy’s underwear.
When Waller was arrested his phone was seized, police found indecent photos of another boy known as Child T.
A police interview with Thomas Waller (Surrey Police)
In a victim impact statement, Child D’s father said his son “has amassed a collection of memories that I would never want in a person.”
He described Waller as “cold, malicious and calculating” and added: “Tom cannot be allowed to do this again.”
Child D’s mother added that her son described Waller as his “new best friend” and used his “skills” to “establish trust with my son and then exploit him.”
“When my son told me what happened, I couldn’t believe what I heard,” he said. “She didn’t know what happened to her was wrong. This man took advantage of that beautiful innocence.”
Criticizing the nursery worker for his lack of admission of guilt and judgment, she added: “This man has subjected my son and my family to further trauma.”
Child T’s mother said she felt “shock, then confusion” when her son told her what happened.
“Our son was saying and doing things that a three-year-old shouldn’t be doing,” she said.
“I’m afraid one day (Child T’s) memories of what happened will come back to haunt him. This could affect the rest of his life.”
The court heard the trauma left her crying herself to sleep at night as she struggled with guilt for sending her son to nursery.
“I believe he knew exactly what he was doing,” he said of Waller, adding: “His actions were deliberate and calculated.”
Judge Harden-Frost said Waller used his position at the nursery to sexually abuse the boys “in the few days he was able to supervise the children going to the toilet”.
“It’s heartbreaking that one of the effects of your actions is that your victims’ parents feel responsible,” he added.
Thomas Waller was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court (Alamy/PA)
Aphra Bruce-Jones, defending Waller, said she did not admit to abusing children but accepted she was found guilty.
In mitigation, he claimed that his offending was a result of “opportunism rather than deliberate isolation” and that he chose to study childcare development “because of his childhood experiences”.
The nursery, which cannot be named for legal reasons, said they were “deeply shocked” and “took immediate action” when concerns were raised about Waller.
He was found guilty in total of one count of rape, two of causing a boy under 13 to engage in sexual activity and one of taking an indecent photograph of a child.
Rebecca Millardship, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said Waller’s crimes were “one of the worst nightmares imaginable for a parent”.
“They entrusted the care of their young child to Waller, who abused that trust in the most egregious way just weeks after starting her job at the nursery,” he added.
“He carefully planned his attacks on these three-year-old boys and deliberately isolated them from everyone else.
“It was our case that he focused on qualifications that would allow him to work in a nursery because he had a sexual interest in young children.
“We hope today’s sentencing will bring some closure to the young victims in this case and their parents who have endured the most horrific ordeal.”
