EXETER CARE WORKER JAILED FOR SICKENING ELDER ABUSE
A care worker named Jinu Shaji has been sentenced to a year in jail after being caught on camera abusing a 94-year-old resident at the Langford Park Nursing Home in Exeter.The footage depicted Shaji forcefully pushing the elderly man's legs over his head for four minutes, ignoring his cries of pain and pleas to stop.
The incident was filmed by relatives using a spy camera after raising concerns over bruises on the victim's legs.
When the manager saw the footage, she described it as the most cruel thing she had ever seen in her 38 years in the care sector.
Shaji fled to India following the incident but was arrested upon his return to the UK.
He pleaded guilty to ill-treatment while working as a carer.
During the hearing, Judge David Evans highlighted that there was no legitimate reason for his actions, stating, "This was the deliberate infliction of pain on someone effectively helpless simply to make your task in the room as simple as possible.
Throughout you ignored his loud and distressing cries of pain.
You displayed cruel unconcern." The case prompted police to caution three other care workers involved.
The victim's family, especially his granddaughter, expressed their trauma and disappointment, emphasizing that the elderly and vulnerable deserve better treatment.
The granddaughter noted the victim's pre-existing brain injury and the loss of his ability to communicate, highlighting the cruelty inflicted upon him in his final days.
The family also stated that his treatment hastened his death a few months later.
Shaji, who was 26 at the time of sentencing and had no prior criminal record, expressed shame for his actions, citing work pressure and fear related to his visa status as reasons for his conduct.
The court emphasized that there was no justification for his behavior, and his actions represented a severe breach of care standards, with police confirming that other staff involved received police cautions.
