What befell James Bulger? After questioning Thompson and Venables, Detective Phil Roberts said, As far as Im concerned that day I stared evil in the face., Roberts continued, They were a match made in hell. A policeman stands guard at the entrance of the site where the body of James Bulger was found on a railway embankment in Liverpool. "Pure evil, I will never change my mind about that.". In 2008, Jon Venables was given a formal warning for a drunken fight & was also arrested for a cocaine offence. It was the second time she had attempted to post information purportedly about Venables, the . The twisted child killer, now aged 39, took the youngster from a shopping centre along with friend Robert Thompson, before the baby's dead body by a railway track. Venables was given a SECOND new identity following his release from prison in 2013. This was largely due to the fact that Venables appeared more emotional, while Thompson often appeared chillingly unfazed. More than 25 years later, the surveillance image above remains etched in the minds of the millions familiar with the James Bulger case. Clickhereto upload yours. Over 20 years later, he has remained off the radar of authorities and has continued to live under his assumed identity. But on that fateful day, the two boys would take their crimes to a horrific new level by kidnapping and killing a child. Robert Thompson was released in 2010. Shockingly, James Bulger wasnt the first child they targeted that day. The reports said that Robert is openly gay and is in a long-term relationship with a partner who knows his real identity. in March 2019. Routine psychiatric examinations determined that he showed remorse for his crimes. Four years later, Venables returned to prison on the same charge. There are currently six infamous Brit criminals whose crimes are so notorious they have been given lifetime anonymity. Thompson was held at Barton Moss near Manchester, where he cultivated an interest in subjects like art and theater. But once a child turns 18, their name can be reported. Most recently, Venables was denied parole in September 2020. Everything we know, Mr. Justice Edis sentenced Venables to 40 months in prison, saying, Shed objected to Ralphs petition, saying, Who are Miles Pfeffers parents? Some witnesses later remembered seeing Bulger laughing while others remembered seeing him resisting and even screaming for his mother. The same path would not apply to his partner in crime, however. But the two ten-year-olds said, We just found him at the bottom of the hill.. Officials wrote: "The panel listed as risk factors those influences that made it more likely that Mr Venables would reoffend in the future. Apparently satisfied with their explanation, the woman simply told the two boys to take the toddler down to the nearby Walton Lane Police Station. Within hours of that surveillance image being captured on the afternoon of February 12, 1993, 10-year-olds Jon Venables and Robert Thompson had tortured two-year-old James Bulger to death. Meanwhile, court-appointed psychiatrists said that both Thompson and Venables knew the difference between right and wrong. Hes gonna be all right, Denise, I said. A life for a life.. He lives in a community in the North West. While serving his sentence, Thompson showed remarkable improvement. Another investigator said Thompson "would cry whenever there would be an awkward situation," to avoid questioning. They were caught by a surveillance camera leaving the mall at 3:42 PM. While there, he reportedly told his fellow inmates that he was a car thief. "To let him out could be another death sentence for an innocent child like James. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. He was arrested yet again in 2017 for the same crime. The cops soon checked both boys homes. It is believed Thompson remains in a long-term relationship with a man who knows his real identity. He was sent back to prison with a new identity as hed divulged who he was to staff and inmates. And if they hadnt been caught I fear they would have struck again. And if they hadnt been caught I fear they would have struck again. A Match Made In Hell: How Robert Thompson And Jon Venables Became Killers At Age 10. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features Press Copyright Contact us Creators . Though authorities initially thought Bulger had been abducted by an adult, CCTV footage revealed the shocking truth that he had been taken by two kids. What about his mum, will you tell her Im sorry?. June 24, 2011. The. Daniel Rennie is a freelance writer residing in Melbourne, Australia. How can anyone say this monster is safe to live among us ever again?. His dad abandoned the family five years before Bulger's murder - leaving mum Ann devastated. On March 4, 2019, it was announced Venables is to keep his anonymity after a judge ruled it would protect him from "serious violence". Despite this evidence, however, Venables and Thompson werent initially the authorities prime suspects. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. At the canal, they dropped Bulger on his head and left him on the ground crying. One of the investigators who talked to Thompson described him as street smart and clever.I dont know how he was doing at school, but he was switched on and he was trying to con me, trying very hard,the investigator said on Channel 5sLost Boy: The Killing of James Bulger. He is a dangerous, predatory child abuser and killer, and I am terrified he will harm another child like my James,Ralph said. They went out that day to kill I truly believe that. Both boys were ordered to be imprisoned until review when they turned 18. 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Robert Thompson and Venables became Britain's youngest killers for 250 years, James Bulger was snatched from his mum in a shopping mall in Merseyside, Denise Fergus shows previously unseen family photos of her murdered two-year-old son for a new documentary 'James Bulger: A Mother's Story with Trevor McDonald'. Venables and Robert Thompson - who were 10 at the time of the horrifying murder - were both convicted in November 1993. They were a match made in hell. The older boys then meandered around Liverpool past shops, buildings, and parking lots. 7 Oct 2021; Updated 13:36, 7 . He had passed five GCSEs, taken A-levels and enjoyed trips to the Lake District and even to the theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. But when Venables was recalled to jail in 2010, it emerged Thompson had done well at Barton Moss secure unit, in Eccles, Lancs, showing a growing interest and talent in art. The judge said: [Venables] is uniquely notorious and there is a strong possibility, if not a probability, that if his identity were known he would be pursued resulting in grave and possibly fatal consequences.. Ten-year-old Jon Venables poses for a mugshot for British authorities on February 20, 1993. In October 2020, a parole report stated that Venables was attracted to sexual violence and recommended that he remain in prison. A 2015 interview with James Bulgers mother. We pay for videos too. But Blake Morrison, the author of As If: A Crime, a Trial, a Question of Childhood, a book on the trial, points out that Venables had a temper and had been known to lose control and had done some pretty weird things[and it was] just as likely that he was the instigator.. But with no further offenses, Thompson might be a great example of how a child who commits a horrific act of violence can be rehabilitated and live a productive life after being incarcerated. In 2010, he was imprisoned for downloading images depicting various kinds of sexual abuse being inflicted upon male toddlers. But by 4:15 p.m., there was no sign of the boy and so he was quickly reported missing to the police. During the murder trial in November 1993, Thompson was depicted as the leader, and Venables the follower. She quickly found mall security personnel and described her son and what he was wearing. Then Venables and Thompson came upon two older boys that they knew. A two-year-old James Bulger was kidnapped and killed by the ten-year-old Robert Thompson and his partner Jon Venables. March 10, 2021 - 20:29 GMT Eve Crosbie. Many of these witnesses later admitted that Bulger looked distressed. Venables and Thompson were both charged. BWP Media via Getty ImagesTen-year-old Robert Thompson, one James Bulgers killers, poses for a mugshot for British authorities on February 20, 1993. Robert Thompson was born on August 23, 1982 - the fifth of seven children. The caller told the police that Venables and Thompson were both absent from school on Friday and that they themselves had seen blue paint on the sleeve of Venables jacket. "This is, therefore, a wholly exceptional case and the evidence in 2019 is more than sufficient to sustain the conclusion that there continues to be a real risk of very substantial harm to (Venables).". Before long, an anonymous caller reported to the police that Thompson and Venables were behind the murder, revealing that both boys had been absent from school on the day of Bulgers disappearance and that there may have been some criminal evidence on Venables jacket. He totally denied everything, said Detective Sergeant Phil Roberts. A staff writer for All Thats Interesting, Marco Margaritoff has also published work at outlets including People, VICE, and Complex, covering everything from film to finance to technology. Despite positive behaviour and landing a job in jail, Parole officials ruled Venables was still not safe to be released. She was also accused of being a loose woman who was often seen with several different men. Venables, who appeared via a video link that only the judge could see, pleaded guilty to possession of indecent images of children for a second time and was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. His identity is protected by a worldwide injunction - meaning that even trying to find out where he lives could land you in jail. ONE of James Bulger's killers says he has had a better life as a result of murdering the toddler. Such was the shocking story of two 10-year-old's, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson from England, who killed and mutilated the body of 2-year-old James Bulger.. On that fateful day, the troubled boys were skipping school and wandering around a busy mall, stealing sweets . But they werent. In January 2018, James Bulger's mum Denise Fergus backed calls for a public inquiry into the toddler's murder. Then, dive into the maddening mystery behind the Atlanta Child Murders. The pair tortured and murdered James, whose body was found by a railway line. "I have had urges, inquisitive. Though Thompson was believed to have been the leader of the James Bulger murder plot, he has never reoffended since hes been released. [Robert Thompson and Jon Venables] now 18, were sent to secure units in November 1993, after they were found guilty of abducting two-year old James Bulger and beating him to death, the Home Office has announced today that they will be freed after serving less than nine years of their sentence. But when she looked down, he was gone. Upon their release, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were given new identities and granted legal anonymity for life due to the public fury that surrounded their trial and the danger of citizens hunting down the infamous James Bulger killers in order to take vengeance. Who was Wu Lien-teh and who was his wife Ruth? Its not surprising that he may have revealed his true identity, given the enormity of what hes done and the difficulty of coming to terms with that and a new identity,Harry said. The youngster had no record of violence before he was found guilty of killing two-year-old James Bulger. At the mall, James Bulger killers wandered from shop to shop, stealing anything they could get their hands on, then tossing their stolen booty down escalators just for the fun of it. The brutal torture and murder of James Bulger occurred sometime between 5:45 and 6:30 PM. She was concerned, but another woman standing nearby said shed heard James laughing moments ago and so both assumed nothing was wrong. With Bulgers mother, Denise, momentarily distracted, they got the toddler to come with them. "But he has duped them once too often and now they have ruled against him. Robert had no father figure as his dad abandoned the family five years before the murder. Later that night, one of the women saw the news that Bulger was missing. After that point, the James Bulger killers were to be assessed and, if they werent deemed to be a danger to society, released. But most did nothing and those that stopped and questioned the James Bulger killers soon enough let them go on their way to ultimately murder the toddler. Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Learn more about it in the article below. Robert Thompson (on the left) and Jon Venables (both born in August, 1982, ) are two felons, known in British history as the youngest convicted criminals at . Jon Venables pictured using a mobile phone, a questionable activity given his inability to maintain anonymity. In this case, it was just eight years, at which time the boys would be 18. This left her with the impression that he was faking remorse. A woman concerned for the toddler told Venables and Thompson that she would take the child to the police station herself. In 1993, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables abducted, tortured and murdered the toddler after leading him away from a shopping centre in . "Risk factors identified in subsequent reviews include thinking about sex a lot, problems in maintaining relationships, concerns about self-awareness, and his ability to deal with stress. They went out that day to kill I truly believe that. ROBERT Thompson abducted and tortured to death two-year-old James Bulger alongside his partner in crime Jon Venables when they were just ten years old. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. He was then told that hed have to wait two more years before hed be eligible for parole again. Soon after, a woman saw Thompson punch Bulger and shake him. James Bulger's father calls for Jon Venables's anonymity to be lifted, A police handout photo of Robert Thompson from 1993, James Bulger, two, was abducted from a shopping centre in Bootle, Merseyside, Ralph Bulger is the father of murdered James, Venables (pictured as a child) was sent to prison over possession of child abuse imagery, A video still of James Bulger being led away in 1993, John Venables, pictured after his arrest in February 1993. Authorities considered Thompson to be the ringleader in the murder that he and Venables committed. And so Bulger slipped away from safety once again. The woman began calling for her son and ran outside, where she found Venables and Thompson beckoning the boy to follow them. Just a couple of days later, Bulger was found on the same railway track where his killers had left him. Beyond that, I have no further comments to make., Inside Aimee Challenors life, her husband and parents, Inside Kimberly Guilfoyles life, her parents and ex-husbands, Are Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes still dating? However, Venables was recalled to prison in November 2017 when he was caught with the sickening child abuse images once again. Thompson and Venables were only 10 years old at the time of the murder, making them the youngest convicted killers in Britain. The youngster had no record of violence before he was found guilty of killing two-year-old James Bulger. PA Images/Getty ImagesThe Liverpool railway embankment where James Bulgers body was found. Police dropped the charges against him after he agreed to enroll in an alcohol awareness course. Now the tide has turned and finally he is facing real prison time where he should have been from the beginning., *Lost Boy: The Killing of James Bulger airs tonight on Channel 5 at 9pm and continues at the same time on Thursday, Get the biggest TV headlines, recaps and insider knowledge straight to your inbox. On 24 November 1993, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables were found guilty of the murder of James Bulger, becoming the youngest convicted murderers in the 20th century. , the five GCSEs, taken A-levels and enjoyed trips to the fact that Venables was attracted to violence. Images/Getty ImagesThe Liverpool railway embankment where James Bulgers body was found guilty of killing two-year-old James Bulger alongside his in! Would be 18 there was no sign of the boy to follow them torture... Saw the news that Bulger was found on a railway line boys would take crimes!, Denise, I will never change my mind about that. `` mystery behind the child! 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