Childcare worker charged with torture of baby boy in Queensland centre
Warning: This story contains descriptions of alleged child abuse
The 46-year-old worker, who is accused of carrying out multiple assaults across several days last August and September, appeared in court last week.
The ABC understands the educator was allegedly observed by the childcare centre grabbing the child by the neck and head, repeatedly smothering his face with a cot mattress and pillow, pulling his head back, hitting him on the head, putting her foot on his face and kicking him across the floor.
She was also allegedly seen at various times shaking him, throwing him onto a beanbag, lifting him by one arm, mock punching near his face, throwing a playpen at him, and forcefully pushing and throwing him down while he slept.
The child's father, who asked not to be identified, said the ordeal had shattered his family and destroyed their trust in the childcare system.
"We had to move house, move jobs, pack up our lives," the father said.
The alleged abuse occurred in the baby room at Injinoo Childcare Centre in remote Far North Queensland, a childcare service excluded from the National Quality Framework (NQF) on the basis it received direct funding from the Australian government.
This means it is not assessed or rated against national quality standards used to rate centres. It is regulated under Queensland's Education and Care Services Act.
A spokesperson for the Queensland Department of Education said in a statement: "The Regulatory Authority has undertaken action in relation to Injinoo Child Care Centre. This matter is currently open to review."
It is the latest scandal to hit Australia's childcare sector, where ABC Investigations has uncovered a disturbing pattern of physical and sexual abuse, poor supervision, declining educator standards, and a regulatory system failing to protect children.
The arrest of Melbourne childcare worker Joshua Dale Brown, who is charged with more than 70 child abuse offences, became a national flashpoint, fuelled public outrage and added pressure on governments to urgently address the childcare crisis.
In federal parliament last week, Education Minister Jason Clare introduced a suite of reforms, referencing the ABC's work exposing systemic failings.
For the boy's father, the turning point came when his wife received a call from the centre saying there had been "an incident" and someone had been stood down.
"We're all doing therapy … Our child now wakes up screaming at night — we don't know if it's nightmares," he said.
The boy's mother told the ABC the shocking allegations had turned her world upside down.
"It's caused me great anxiety around trusting people with our son," she said.
"In the earlier days, I suffered lack of sleep, weight loss and trauma, second-guessing our parenting and worrying about every time he was crying."
Email Adele Ferguson on ferguson.adele@abc.net.au or Chris Gillett on gillett.chris@abc.net.au
The ABC understands the educator was initially hired as a cook at the childcare centre and in July last year was promoted to an educator in the baby room.
Queensland Police Service (QPS) said the 46-year-old Mapoon woman had been charged with a number of offences including torture, assault and assault occasioning bodily harm and that the alleged abuse had occurred between August 30 and September 5, 2024.
"As the matter is currently before the courts, we are unable to comment further," the QPS spokesperson said.
NSW Greens politician Abigail Boyd, who has helped expose systemic issues with the NSW childcare regulator, is calling for a royal commission into the sector.
"These reports are gut-wrenching," she said.
Ms Boyd said earlier this year, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had dismissed calls for a royal commission after the ABC's Four Corners uncovered examples of abuse, mistreatment and neglect in the early childhood sector, characterising these cases as isolated incidents and not necessarily representative of a systemic issue.
"Months of horrific reporting later, it's incontrovertibly clear that the issues run far deeper," Ms Boyd said.
A spokesperson for Injinoo Childcare Centre did not respond to detailed questions from the ABC, including about why it took so long for the family to be informed.
In a statement, a spokesperson said: "We take all child protection matters seriously and acknowledge this is a difficult and complex situation.
"These matters are currently the subject of ongoing inquiries.
"We are committed to ensuring that any legal proceedings or ongoing inquiries are not impacted in any way, and it is therefore not appropriate for us to comment to the media."
The boy's father said he felt the system had failed his family.
"You have your first kid, you drop them off at a centre … you expect they'll be safe," he said.
"I feel so let down.
"The system is completely broken.
"Childcare centres are popping up everywhere, it's a money spinner … and the regulator needs to do their job."
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