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Police clearance of childcare worker during sex crime probe

Published July 18, 2026 at 9:03 PM UTC

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A Sydney childcare worker, Hamish Tait, 35, is facing 329 criminal charges following a long-running Australian Federal Police investigation known as Operation Moonbi. The investigation, which began in June 2025 after a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, uncovered evidence of child abuse material on the man's electronic devices. While the man was eventually arrested and remanded in custody in July 2025, questions have emerged regarding how he maintained his accreditation to work with children during the initial stages of the police probe. The case involves 158 alleged victims, with authorities still working to identify 22 children. The legal process was delayed by a non-publication order, which was recently lifted to allow for a comprehensive victim identification process and to ensure families could be notified by a dedicated multi-agency contact point. The accused had worked at or attended 62 early childhood education facilities over a 16-year period, raising significant concerns about the oversight of childcare workers and the timing of police interventions in sensitive investigations. Authorities are now focused on supporting the affected families and finalizing the evidence required for a criminal trial.