How a paedophile working in a nursery finally got caught

Nursery paedophile Vincent Chan who sexually abused and covertly filmed children in his care has been jailed for 18 years.

Vincent Chan, 45, is facing years behind bars for molesting girls aged two to four while working at the Bright Horizons nursery in Finchley Road, West Hampstead.

He has admitted taking upskirt videos of schoolgirls in his previous job in a primary school, as well as spying on women and girls getting undressed in their bedrooms.

Chan admitted sexual offending against women and girls spanning 15 years, with victims ranging from very young girls to teenagers, women, and in one case a pensioner in her 70s.

He has admitted filming up the skirts of primary school pupils as they sat at their desks, recording himself during a solo sex act in the classroom, and superimposing the faces of children onto pornographic images.

He amassed at least 26,000 indecent images of children online, including clips of children being raped.

On Thursday, at Wood Green Crown Court, Judge John Dodd KC, the Recorder of Haringey, jailed Chan for 18 years for an “utterly wicked, perverse, and depraved” catalogue of abuse.

Judge Dodd said the mass of images and videos found by police clearly displays Chan’s “deep-seated sexual obsession” with children.

“Every right-thinking person hearing about your offending would feel revulsion and disbelief," he said.

“You became a sexual predator and someone who clearly lost all sense of moral compass.”

The judge said Chan’s early offending had largely been confined to “looking, watching, and recording”.

“That all changed in 2017 when you left the primary school and took up your position in a nursery.

“Your offending escalated and became far more serious.”

The judge said Chan had clearly planned his offences at the nursery, to avoid being caught, saying: “The breach of trust could hardly be greater.

"The nursery is a place where every parent and guardian expects their child will be safe.”

Chan must serve at least two-thirds of the 18-year prison sentence, and will spend an extra eight years on licence once he is released.

Bright Horizons nursery said: "This is a distressing time for families and all those impacted by Vincent Chan’s horrific crimes and our thoughts are first and foremost with them.

"Keeping children safe is our most important responsibility. Vincent Chan broke that trust. His actions were depraved and devious and go against the kindness and care our dedicated professionals provide to children each day."

Parents of some of Chan's victims, who sat in court to hear the sentence, are now taking legal action against Bright Horizons and have called for the nursery itself to be prosecuted.

"We believe their safeguarding failures created the perfect hunting ground for a predator", the parents said, in a statement issued through their lawyers Leigh Day.

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