A Nepalese childcare worker has been released on bail after facing court accused of slapping two young children as they slept in a Sydney centre.
Jayendra Jung Shahi, 24, was arrested on Saturday and charged with two counts of common assault over the alleged incident , which took place at the Panania Montessori Academy at about 1pm on Thursday.
Shahi, who gained an early childhood education diploma last year and is trying to get permanent residency in Australia, faced court on Sunday where prosecutors opposed bail, alleging he is a risk to children.
The court heard Shahi was caught on CCTV allegedly slapping the two boys aged three and four with an open hand while they were sleeping during nap time, behaviour which police prosecutor Sam Adwan called “quite concerning”, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Shahi’s wife said in an affidavit that recent family tragedies had caused a decline in her husband’s mental health, and his lawyer James Moore said the night spent in custody had been a “wake-up call” for his client, who was intending to seek professional help for mental health issues.
Acting Judge Amanda Coultas-Roberts said the allegations were “pretty serious examples of common assault”.
“They were committed in circumstances where the accused was meant to care for children in a childcare centre, and whilst two of those children were sleeping, aged three and four, he slapped them across the face,” she told the court.
But Shahi, who has no criminal history, was granted bail with conditions including surrendering his passport and not going near childcare centres.
A parent is believed to have reported the alleged assaults, and the Montessori Academy said they took action immediately by standing Shahi down and making reports to police and regulators.
“We have since terminated the educator’s employment,” the centre said.
Shahi will face court again next month.
Left, right, Jayenda Shahi (Facebook).
