A teenage nursery worker has been sentenced to a decade in prison for a series of sickening sexual attacks on young children, including a three-year-old boy he assaulted in a school toilet.
The Disturbing Crimes
Thomas Waller, 18, from Surrey, was a newly qualified staff member at the nursery when he preyed upon his vulnerable victims. The court heard how Waller built a rapport with one three-year-old boy through the children's television programme Paw Patrol before isolating and sexually attacking him alone in the toilet.
The young victim's mother, speaking with BBC South East, described Waller as a "very dangerous individual" whose calculated actions she found deeply frightening. She revealed the horror of discovering the abuse after her son explained what had happened to him "in three-year-old terms".
A Mother's Harrowing Discovery
The mother, who has not been publicly identified, described how she remained calm when her son first disclosed the assault. "I asked him some questions about what he was telling me to try to get him to repeat it," she stated. "I was really questioning him in different ways to see if his story would stay the same and consistent, which it did. In fact, he was adding more and more explanation of what happened."
After this devastating conversation, the mother immediately informed the nursery. Staff acted promptly, reporting the incident to police, who arrested Waller the same evening.
Court Proceedings and Sentencing
Waller was found guilty at Staines Magistrates' Court on October 31 of multiple horrific offences, including rape, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and taking indecent images of children. The crimes took place in 2024.
The case was deemed too severe for the youth court. CPS barrister Rio Pahlavanpour noted that had Waller been an adult, the sentence for the most serious offence could have reached 13 years. District judges indicated he could face nearly 20 years for the horrors inflicted.
Waller was ultimately sentenced at Guildford Crown Court to 10 years in prison. Following his sentencing last month, he was captured on camera pushing past BBC Surrey reporters, repeatedly uttering "no comment" when asked why he abused small children and whether he had anything to say to his victims' parents.
