Where is Jon Venables now? What happened to James Bulger’s killer

In 1993, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson led two-year-old James Bulger away from a shopping centre in Bootle, Merseyside, while his mother was briefly distracted in a butcher’s shop.

Venables and Thompson, who were both just 10 years-old at the time of the offence, tortured and murdered James, who was just one month away from turning three when he was killed.

His mutilated body was found two days later, on a railway line 2.5 miles away.

Thompson and Venables were sent to a young offenders’ institute until their release at the age of 18, when they were transferred to adult prisons.

Where is Jon Venables now?

Jon Venables on Wednesday lost a Parole Board bid to be freed from jail.

Venables, who is now 41-years-old, still poses a danger to children and could go on to offend again, the board concluded.

The Parole Board’s decision, published on Wednesday, said: “After considering the circumstances of his offending, the progress made while in custody and on licence, and the evidence presented in the dossier, the panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public.”

The panel of parole judges “doubted Mr Venables’ ability to be open and honest with professionals, and concluded that there remained a need for him to address outstanding levels of risk”, it added.

The decision came after a series of delays and following a hearing held behind closed doors last month where Venables asked to be released.

Was Jon Venables freed from prison?

Venables was released on licence in July 2001 and recalled to prison in February 2010 after indecent images of children were found on his computer.

He was once again freed in August 2013 and then called back in November 2017 for the same offence, with parole judges last considering his case in September 2020.

What did the Parole Board say about Jon Venables?

According to a summary of the Parole Board’s latest decision, Venables had “accepted that he had a long-term sexual interest in children/indecent images of children”, despite taking part in a “considerable amount of work in prison to address this area of risk”. He had a history of taking drugs and secretly trying to use the internet in breach of licence conditions.

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The panel was “concerned by continuing issues of sexual preoccupation in this case”, warning there are “future risks” of him viewing more child sexual abuse images and of him “progressing to offences where he might have contact with children”.

“Both of these present a risk of causing serious harm to others,” the three-page document added.

Despite “competing views” of professionals who provided reports to the Parole Board – with some supportive of his release – the panel decided “there would be a risk to others at this time” if Venables was freed from jail.

His previous parole review in 2020 determined he used sex and pornography “as a means of coping”, felt a “lack of fulfilment in life” and had a “need for excitement”, as it looked at his behaviour leading up to his more recent offences.

What has the Government said about the decision?

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said: “James Bulger’s barbaric murder was a crime that shocked the nation and I welcome the Parole Board’s decision to keep his killer behind bars.

“Public protection is our number one priority, which is why I opposed Jon Venables’ release and this Government is reforming the parole system to introduce a stronger ministerial check on the release of the most dangerous offenders.”

There is a long-standing legal order in place to protect the identities of Venables and Thompson because of their young age when they murdered James.

When will Venables next be eligible for parole?

Venables will be eligible for another parole review in around two years’ time.

Additional reporting by PA