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Jon Venables, who murdered toddler James Bulger more than 30 years ago, will be found guilty next month Parole board hears his latest bid for freedom.
43 years old, tortured and murdered In February 1993, two-year-old James After kidnapping him from a place merseyside His case will be heard at an oral hearing by a parole director, more than two years after his last appeal.
In November 1993, Venables was jailed alongside Robert Thompson, the 10-year-old who committed one of the most notorious crimes crime in British history.
The boys were released with new identities in June 2001, but Venables was recalled to prison in February 2010 after indecent images of children were found on his computer.
He was released again in August 2013 and recalled for the same offense in November 2017, with a parole judge considering his case again in September 2020.
2023, The parole board rejected the offerfound he still posed a danger to children and was likely to re-offend.
this daily mirror Reports this week said James’ family was informed of the upcoming parole hearing on Tuesday, which is expected to take place next month, but the parole board has not yet confirmed a date.
Kym Morris, a spokesman for James’ mother Denise Fergus, told the newspaper: “Denis Fergus is once again forced to face a process of reopening unimaginable trauma.
“Denise had hoped that repositioning… would give her a degree of peace and freedom from further pain. But that hope has now been dashed.”
What happened to James Bulger?
James was murdered on February 12, 1993. He was living with his mother in BootleMerseyside – just to the north liverpool.
When she placed her order at a butcher’s shop, she believed James was with her while she was being served, but when she looked down he was gone, as her subsequent murder trial at Preston Crown Court heard.
Two minutes later, a truant Venables and Thompson were captured on CCTV holding hands as they led away her son.
David Wilson, emeritus professor of criminology at Birmingham City University, said: “We saw James being taken away by two killers.” independent In 2017, when he looked back on this video.
“To the world, it looked like an innocent environment. I think the fact that there was a visual image of what was going to happen to that little boy was the beginning of allowing this crime to permeate our consciousness in a way that other crimes don’t.”
Venables and Thompson took James about two and a half miles to the Walton area of north Liverpool and climbed the steep bank with the child towards the railway line.
There, the boys threw the blue modeling paint they had stolen earlier into James’ eyes. They punched and kicked him, threw bricks and stones at him and put batteries in his mouth before hitting him on the head with an iron rod, causing 10 fractures to his skull.
They then placed him on the tracks and pressed gravel against his head, hoping his death would look like an accident.
Home Office pathologist Dr. Alan Williams later testified that he counted 22 bruises, lacerations and abrasions on James’ face and head. In addition, Dr. Williams noted that he had 20 wounds on his body. He couldn’t decide which one was the fatal blow.
Merseyside Police pinpointing the moment James was taken away and releasing still images from it that will forever be associated with the crime.
Denise and her husband Ralph made an emotional appeal for their son’s return, but two days after he disappeared, the child’s body was found just 200 yards from Walton Lane police station.
A combination of video and various sightings led them to Venables and Thompson. Six days after James disappeared, police charged the boys with murder.
They were found guilty after a 17-day trial in November 1993, with the presiding judge, Sir Michael Morland, naming the boys, previously known only as Boy A and Boy B.
He said they had committed “acts of unparalleled evil and barbarity” before ordering their imprisonment with a minimum term of eight years.
What happened to Venables and Thompson?
Venables and Thompson were released in 2001 with new identities. Their release came with a globally legally binding court order banning the publication of any content revealing their identities.
James’ father Ralph challenged the ban in 2019, trying to convince the court that the original anonymity order against Venables was no longer valid. However, the court ruled against changing the ban.
While Thompson has been little heard from since, Venables was arrested in late 2008 for affray and cocaine possession. He was recalled to prison in March 2010 after child abuse images were discovered on his personal computer.
He was released in July 2013 but was recalled again in November 2017 for the same offences. In September 2020, he underwent parole review but was ultimately rejected and was Rejected again in 2023.