God knows how they must be feeling now.. He was in great distress' And what about the little, innocent boy he killed??! A parole board ruled that Thompson and Venables were no longer a threat. They didnt kill him in an accident it was premeditated and they tortured that poor baby. As a new documentary is set to air on ITV, the haunting words of Jon Venables' parents have resurfaced. The best photos of birds and other wildlife from around the world. Venables and Thompson were seen on CCTV calmly leading the toddler out of the shopping centre by his hand. Robert would give Jon presents of stolen objects: trolls, of course, toy terrapins, sweets. Grey Heron. He was also given 'respite care' - six weekly weekend breaks to relieve the family of the burden of looking after him. I couldnt make any sense of it, Robert later recalled, desolately, when asked about his fathers unexpected departure. We feel so sorry for him because he must be going through so much torment. Just having a bit of shade!! At the trialnine months laterI would learn that Robert Thompson had been among those people. The end of the court case was not the end of course. A smell of bleach lingered on some of the tiled steps that led up to the front doors. In any case, the couple drifted together, and in 1983, just fifteen months succeeding Jons birth, Susan gave birth to their third child, a daughter. Her family were dignified throughout, but on that day one of theBulgerfamily supporters allowed themselvesa loud 'YES' as the verdicts came in. I just think of James and his Dad and about all that fun with his little boy, like I had with Jon.". 'Provided you have no court orders for debts already,' the man on the phone would add helpfully. Drivers have been warned to leave extra time for their Monday morning commute due to icy roads during rush hour, following a weekend of wintry weather. Constantly restless, his workbooks were empty, and he would often be denied recess because he was so far behind. .". Their faces affected me deeply. However, you will find some great articles which you can comment on right now in our Comment section. After a while the 10-year-olds began to charge - a tenner an interview. "Throughout the conduct of the case there have been a number of issues that have been swept under the carpet. Little Bobby went to visit his brothers every so often, eager to show them the latest playthings he had robbed from the assorted shops nearby. Depressed, Ann began drinking heavily and was taking narcotics which caused her to hallucinate. Neil Venables, 40, said he felt "just devastated, thinking of that little boy'. What a horror it all was. Sitting in the new class was a chubby boy with a cherub's face - Robert Thompson. For a start, there were only three children, of whom Jon was the middle. We will never be able to do the fun things any more . I wasnt on duty that day, so the very beginnings of the story washed over me. My young body must have been tense with the deep anxiety that permeated every inch of that courtroom. In March 2010, Venables was recalled to prison for downloading and distributing more than 100 images of child abuse. Read about our approach to external linking. Susan Venables Facebook: susan.venables.9 Lives in Mellor, Blackburn With Darwen, . He was jailed for two years before being granted parole again in July 2013. It should certainly be moved up to 12; in some European countries it is 14," she said. his mother was told that it was important that she stayed in his life and stood by him. The two had an aberrant relationship with one another, in the sense that it was almost as though they had never divorced. 'They would say 'take your son home'. ', Mrs Thompson had no illusions about her son: 'He's a little liar, he's devious, he's a scally, he robs, he plays truant.' That's the thing that upsets me because obviously, where I was standing poor little James must have been not far . Jon breaks into hysteria whenever the subject is mentioned. He is an old-fashioned crime and punishment man. Find out more, The latest offers and discount codes from popular brands on Telegraph Voucher Codes, As James Bulger killer Jon Venables is sent back to prison, Shelagh Fogarty writes about her experiences as a young reporter on the case at the time, James Bulger, aged 2 years old, being led away in the New Strand shopping centre in the Bootle area of Liverpool, Denise Bulger arrives at Preston Crown Couty on November 24 1993, Shelagh Fogarty was a young reporter at the time of the murder, The police van carrying Venables and Thompson arrives at Preston Crown Court, Sarah Ferguson exclusive: Meghan has made Harry very happy, 32 best gifts for her: top present ideas to buy for mother's day in 2023, Midlife women are being told to sit down and shut up and not just by men, Imogen Stubbs: Its become less and less acceptable to age, Cost of HRT set to be slashed in new prescription scheme, Magic Mike and the naked truth about male strippers, Inside the James Bulger files 25 years on. Ms Truss has written a 4,000-word essay in todays Sunday Telegraph in which she stood by her plans to boost economic growth during her short tenure in No 10, Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker fails to stop team-mate Joel Matip (not pictured) from scoring an own goal during the Premier League match at Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton, A member of the public lines the road into St Michaels on Wyre, Lancashire, with missing posters of Nicola Bulley, 45, as police continue their search for the missing woman who was last seen on the morning of Friday January 27, when she was spotted walking her dog on a footpath by the nearby River Wyre, Not your usual prisoner! Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. It was the kind of family neighbours compare themselves against and then feel better. Mrs Thompson worked as an office cleaner until two years ago, when she got pregnant again by another man, who also left her. He carried books on wrestling and wildlife in his school bag. Financially, the couple appeared to be functioning, but meanwhile, Susan was at the end of her rope with her eldest son, who, having become increasingly frustrated at his inability to communicate, had grown terribly unhappy and was having temper tantrums regularly. Thompson & Venebales. 'In my opinion he was victimised. The Royal Mint of a 50p coin featuring Professor Albus Dumbledore as part of a Harry Potter-themed collection. Counsel for the prosecution, Richard Henriques QC, made it clear all three elements needed to be proved for a murder conviction. . Ironically, Jon was the child who caused his parents least anxiety. That means he is currently 35-years-old. Robert Thompson was born to Robert Sr. and Ann Thompson on the 23rd day of August 1982, in Liverpool, England. Susan and the children moved in with her mother for a short time, and then settled in a small cluster of derelict apartments in Old Swan, where Jon attended the nearby Broad Green Preschool. . Robert always wanted to stay out late and encouraged Jon to join him. See that cell. Could they have planned to do it in advance? I don't think so. Real bottom of the gut stuff, like an animal. Like Ann Thompson, however, both parents of Jon Venables rallied round their son and in preparationfor his release Mr Venables accom-panied him on trips to football matches. She claimed, however, that she was completely unaware of Jons erratic behaviors at school, had never seen any evidence to support them (such as cuts on his arms or holes in his socks), and dismissed the possibility that many of the occurrences cited by the teacher had ever taken place. Mr Venables said that the two boys had played truant together four times before, adding that he caught them twice. It is claimed that taxpayers could have to fork out another 250,000 to provide a new life when he is eventually released. He was fearful, he was weak and he was provoked. But his outbursts of anger grew worse and he was suspended for trying to throttle a boy with a ruler. Walton Village Financial Services would lend you pounds 300 for Christmas and demand a total of pounds 460 in repayment. After a while the boys became used to it. Not their punishmentand exclusion from society for the rest of their childhood. Although he appeared to have the more stable upbringing of the two boys, there was a history of family problems. He used to be bullied by other children for being so behind, and would return home at night visibly upset. Jon had to be pulled off the boy, who had gone red in the face, by a teacher who described the incident as the worst case of school violence she had witnessed. In the years between Venabless first return to prison and this latest conviction he was deemed to be living successfully in the community, when in fact he was working out ways to dodge his internet ban and hiding a computer in his headboard in order to download abusive images of children, including what the judge described this week as serious crimes inflicted on male toddlers. Yes, these things are important, but trust. Venables was caught with 1,170 indecent photos of children on his laptop, the Old Bailey was told. gl. She remained very frightened and felt that she and her son were the most hated people in the country. All information on this page is true to my knowledge, and is not intended to diminish or justify either boys actions in any way whatsoever. And there were rewards for breaking rules. It is here, of course, that Jon met and made friends with fellow eccentric, Robert Thompson. The old wood panelled courtroom is small. Denise, James Bugler's mother, went with her brother's girlfriend Nicola to the Bootle Strand Shopping Centre and took James with her. "We are committed to driving sustainability in the leather industry, through the commitment of. Just four years earlier, we had all covered the Hillsborough disaster and come together in grief. "Contrary to what the papers will tell you, he is not a little urchin boy. Ultimately, however, the couples indifferences led to separation, and they were eventually divorced in 1986. There was almost total silence there apart from the sound of shoes on the ground. Many of us had dined together most nights throughout the trial, mulling it all over but distracting ourselves, too. But then, the whole of Robert's family was a bit like that - shunned, outcast, the butt of local criticism, and very well known to police. Such a childish voice. Venables, who was said to have been subjected to regular beatings by his mother Susan, titled the drawing 'My Dads house'. It was their sons picked up by detectives. Thompson did what he often did, looked around, grabbing clumsily at his tongue. It is just heartbreaking.". At the end of the street a mesh wire frame coverered the window of the money lenders. Just something to do.'. On the walls hung oil paintings of local judges and magistrates, their surfaces crinkled with age. ql zo. Meanwhile, A petition demanding a public inquiry into James Bulger's murder case has got nearly 15,000 signatures in one day. A pathologist later said that there were so many injuries - 42 in total - that not one could be isolated as causing the little boy's fatal wound. The appearance in court this week of Venables, now a 35-year-old man, on charges of possessing indecent images of children, was a jarring reminder that, still a quarter of a century on, his rehabilitation is more an ambition than a reality. This would have made little Robert the target of the fourth Thompson brother, who, in less than a years time, had confessed to arson, tried to stab his elder brother in a fit of rage, and had allegedly committed a lewd act against two small children (this incident was overlooked due to lack of evidence; however, because it was always considered a likely possibility that little Robert had been the victim of sexual abuse himself, and since Robert reportedly confirmed this years later, this occurrence involving his elder brother might be thought particularly revealing). Among the list were several horror films, including one video in which the police took special interest: Child's Play 3, a film which carries the line 'Children are consumer trainees'. 'America is the land of shopping malls. One day they stayed out until 10.30pm and Jon received a severe reprimand from his mother. "You look at him and you say to yourself, 'How could you be involved in anything like this?'" One of the new works by Banksy, appears to show a 1950s housewife, wearing a classic blue pinny and yellow washing up gloves, with a swollen eye and a missing tooth seemingly shoving her male partner into a chest freezer, the piece is set on a white wall backdrop in Kent. Are they mad? Take him home, the officer would say to her. It seems likely that he was bullied. Murder of James Bulger. For she added: 'But he's not a murderer.'. Constantly fighting and battering one another, and possibly, too, being hit by their emotionally drained mother, the Thompson brothers often looked scruffy, and, on more than one occasion, were seen bearing bruises and bite marks. Usually, they were slung out. They knew what they were doing," another wrote. The questioning was calm, steady, even playful at the beginning to try to get a sense the two boys really did know the difference between right and wrong. By now, Robert had also stepped comfortably into the role of the aggressor, and, following in the footsteps of his elder brothers, began tormenting his eight-year-old brother on a daily basis. I used to get them for myself at night time. To do that he put on the witness stand all those people who had seen the three boys on the route from the shopping centre to the railway line. James Bulgers mother Denise claims that she managed to track down Thompson six years ago, planning to confront him but instead stared at him from the opposite side of the street, full of rage but unable to act. Other parents came in to complain about attention seeking. In the last few years she stopped drinking in the Top House and tried to keep things together. Most people would regard such sentiments as having come rather late in the day and certainly too late to save poor James. What happened to James Bulger? 'It was very dark and I shouted down, shouted his name. You know, we just try and help him as best we can to try to come to terms with things. This story has no borders,' NBC correspondent Denis Murphy said. Liked by susan venables. I would say he was provoked. Although not officially entered into a witness protection programme they were given help by the authorities in finding new homes and taking on new identities. The case is doomed to be picked over by every faction within the caring professionals and politics. Their. Facebook gives people the power. Mrs Venables has also said that she felt heartbreak for James and his parents and shame for her son. Robert was number five of seven. re bz. 'I couldn't hear anything,' she said. He is far from it. The judge, in sentencing the boys yesterday, voiced his strong suspicion that exposure to violent videos had played a strong part in corrupting them. and things like that is that he was frightened. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. It is time to examine all this.". The James Bulger murder View gallery Venables was born on August 12, 1982. The teacher had a different perspective, saying that Susan was in fact aware of the issue, and had expressed deep concern. The boys lived off chips. fun to be with". "An awful mistake for 10 year olds is shoplifting not murdering a 2 year old FFS," another angry viewer tweeted. They passed 36 people, with one recalling how they urged the boys to take their 'little brother' home because he was 'crying for his mummy'. The most startling moment of the trial came when, in lieu of giving evidence in person, the boys' taped interviews with police - recorded just after their arrest - were played in court. When shop keepers asked what they were doing they would pretend they were waiting for their mum. Born on August 13th, 1982, Jon was the middle child of Neil and Susan Venables. Moments later, we were told, Jon Venables uttered the words, We did it. On the days he was at school he had a knack for stirring things up. They would hang around the video shop in Walton Village where the shop girl was pleased to have their company. and things like that is that he was frightened. Not that he had any need to borrow his dad's. What doing well means is anybodys guess. Can Nigeria's election result be overturned? Architect Shahed Saleem in the Ramadan Pavilion 2023 at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. 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It's high time they were investigated. rk ye. She acknowledged her son had committed a terrible crime but claimed that her innocent younger children were being denied a proper education because of having to abandon their homes to escape attacks. Between January and the day of the murder Robert had absconded 37 half days out of a possible 60 . fn ye vw la. Last November he was arrested and recalled to jail on suspicion of possession of images of child sex abuse. I do believe that she feels guilty deep down for her own part in what happened., Despite the risks of discovery, the relationship is said to have contin- ued to thrive following Thompsons. Who were their parents? Trauma? The boys at Dyson Hall were the object of some envy among their mates because they were given tracksuits and trainers upon arrival and went on trips to Alton Towers. This time, curiosity took the upper hand: 'I wanted to see what it was like,' he said. . Online Marketing For Your Business The breaking point came when Jon was suspended from Broad Square after attempting to choke a classmate with a twelve-inch wooden ruler. It was so stressful trying to contain him. Jon was also mad on computers. Ann was a heavy drinker, separated from her husband, also called Robert, who had deserted the family several years earlier and did not attend court. Will you tell his mum I'm sorry?". 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It was a sign of such restlessness that he was unable to hang on to a football team for long - he kept shifting his allegiance like a floating voter. Fiction Writing. Denise Bulger believes her son's murderers - men now - should be in prison for ever. Not really?. They would sneak out during the morning break, hiding behind a wall before the coast was clear. She said that Jon was always "loving, caring, thoughtful and considerate . Ultimately, wanting to escape the havoc, most of the boys opted to leave home, and some were placed into voluntary care at Dysons Hall, a childrens home just outside of Liverpool. The hardliners in the police have a simpler explanation. He wanted a Rovers strip for his birthday present. Mrs Thompson said she was so often called to Walton Lane police station to retrieve her truanting son that they should have given her a job there. James mother Denise Fergus has been saying this for a long time, but still we hoped that the boy who savaged a tiny child to death could become a man safe to be in our midst. She found it hard bringing the kids up in the neighbourhood. The petition, that now has 14,682 signatures, reads: "We want a Public Inquiry into the James Bulger murder case. By then, Robert and Jon had abducted James Bulger from the Strand and attempted to drown him in the nearby canal. The couples first child, a son, had been born with a cleft pallet, and when Jon was born, much of the Venables focus was on getting their eldest son into speech therapy. The couple, who are living together again after a partial separation, said their feelings towards Jon had not changed despite the terrible crime. These are the words of an officer who was in the police station when DCI Geoff MacDonald of Merseyside Police broke the news to Denise that James was dead. His mother called him hyperactive since, even more than his friend, he was scarcely able to sit still. "He tends to be a bit hyperactive so his concentration did go a bit, but apart from that he is quite bright, no worries.". Click here to find personal data about Susan Venables including phone numbers, addresses, directorships, electoral roll information, related property prices and other useful information. Venables, who was released on licence in 2001 after serving eight years for the murder of two-year-old James, was returned to prison last November after he was caught with the pictures. "He fell over," was the response. Susan Venable - we found 141 people search records: 55 CVs and social profiles with photos, 50 addresses & phone numbers, 1 real estate objects, 6 Susan Venable's cars, 2 companies. The best instincts led hundreds, including me, to lay flowers a few days later at the site of James horrific end. Aged 10, he was barely literate. cl gz. It was to be an adult trial, both boys appearing every day in the full gaze of whoever was in that room, but neither giving evidence directly to the court. NEIL Venables was warned by friends not to let his son play with the other boy. Not for long though. Neil had been laid off in the months prior, so the couple sold their home, and Neil moved back in with his father, before finally relocating to an apartment in Kirkdale. Instead, she was involved in an ITV documentary with Sir Trevor McDonald that will air on Thursday. "Just to let you know that even though footage was used of me on the CH4 programme, I had no part in it," she tweeted. The beginnings of the friendship were inauspicious enough. Jon spent Sunday to Thursday with his mum and the rest of every week with his dad. He was pale in complexion and had watery brown, listless eyes. The right will draw attention to the broken homes, the single parents, the persistent truancy. He had been stripped from the waist down,. Susan seemed happy with the arrangement, although, for the children, this type of relationship would have been just one more confusing anomaly to cope with in the wake of an already confusing time in their young lives. The couple was financially strained from the start, but Ann did what she could to make it work. Jon continued to attend Broad Square, where children of the neighborhood openly mocked and poked fun at his siblings, calling them backward. Jon was also an easy target due to a squint in his eye. Their kids have got everything. Her warnings arent being heeded, but 25 years on, I think she is probably right. Dudson was given a minimum term of 18 years. During the Bulger investigation, police checked the details of 50 videos Mr Venables had hired in recent months. He always had plenty of friends. They played truant, they pinched sweets, they terrorised old ladies. A maudlin ballad about Liverpool was playing in the back- ground and she was cooking the dish known as Scouse. Grainy CCTV footage shows them walking James away from the Strand . That was in September 1991, 17 months before they killed James Bulger. They sat just feet from me, perched on the edge of their wooden seat, smartly dressed and hunched in shame just below their son, Jon. They deal with drugs, they deal with everything. When a police officer asked him why he didn't rescue James bleeding on the railway lines he replied: ' 'Cos blood stains, doesn't it, and then me mother would have to pay more money. Scores more watched proceedings from a neighbouring office block which, for the duration of the trial, came under court jurisdiction. Maybe it was that incident that put the idea into Jon or Robbie's head to 'get a little boy lost'. eb. Venables on the other hand was becoming increasingly agitated in the police interviews. The government will be required to respond within 14 days if as the petition achieves more than 100,000 signatures. The left will make play of social deprivation, unemployment, bad housing and general inner-city rot. The police have uncovered no evidence of any abuse within either family. Following the arrest of their sons it was reported that the mothers of the boys had been attacked and vilified in. She also had to stay strong for the remaining children. Ironically, the relationship between mother and son improved when he, was behind bars. On one occasion, he said, Robert ran off down the street laughing, "You can't catch me". The sunrises through the sea mist over the sculpture The Couple by Sean Henry at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea on the Northumberland coast. wo. It is about a Good Guy doll invaded by the spirit of a mass murderer who kills people in gruesome ways. Will you tell his mum I'm sorry?". Grey seal pups on the beach at Horsey in Norfolk, as the pupping season draws to a close at one the UK's most important sites for the mammals. Two boys who forged a friendship out of breaking the rules. I don't think they understood he was hyperactive. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. For weeks, she stayed in bed, not bothering to tend to the children, and when she finally did reemerge, she readily admitted she drank from morning to night, but had stopped taking the pills. That seems the very least they could face for what they did. In the autumn term of 1992, Robert played truant for 49 half days and Jon for 40. He denied having had any films that were not mainstream, or that were pornographic, in the house. Three years ago, after his mother walloped him, he went to social services and asked them to put him in care. He had been quiet that weekend, they said, but they had thought that was because his mother had taken him to the police station on the Friday evening for playing truant. They hid his body under bricks so that the first train to come along cut his body in two, but he was already dead before this happened. The Americans fed 1 1/2 minutes of the Jamie Bulger story into a 22-minute bulletin of national and international news. . Reporters from around the world ended up in the drab streets of Walton, cadging interviews off any 10-year-old boys hanging around in the streets. xf fy. What they did was exceptionally unpleasant and the fact that a little boy ended up dead is not something the nation can easily forget. sp. 'I can't read hard words,' he said. But. "Youngsters are usually tried in a youth court, [Thompson and Venables] were tried in an adult court. 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