James Bulger killer Jon Venables’ eerie life after launch and paedophilia nosedive

Jon Venables became the youngest convicted murderer in British modern history alongside Robert Thompson after the brutal killing of James Bulger – and he’s been back in prison twice since

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Jon Venables shocked and appalled a nation when he and Robert Thompson kidnapped two-year-old James Bulger from a shopping centre in Merseyside in February 1993 before brutally murdering the innocent toddler.

After being released and being given new identities in 2001, Thompson has stayed out of prison but Venables has been sent back twice on child sexual abuse image charges.

Now, almost ten years after he was jailed for a second time in 2017, Venables could walk free from prison after a parole board hearing – which James’ mother, Denise will attend – was granted and is due to take place next month.

But how did Venables stray into a life of crime once more after release while Thompson didn’t? The Mirror has revealed details of Venables’ odd life since his release and his spiral into paedophilia.

Venables was deemed to pose a ‘trivial’ risk to the public in a psychiatric report prepared in 2000 and was unlikely to reoffend. He was released on a life licence in June 2001.

Measures were taken to protect the notorious child murderers’ identities and they were reportedly given fabricated passports, national insurance numbers, qualification certificates, and even medical records.

They were, however, forbidden from contacting each other or the Bulger family and could not return to Merseyside.

A review suggested there was a “feeling of optimism” that Venables appeared to do “better than expected” on the outside but by 2008, an offender manager visited the then 25-year-olds’ flat and likened it to the bedroom of a teenager.

The report said: “He spends a great deal of leisure time on the PlayStation and on the internet playing games… not sure of the significance of this as yet… I’m not certain what games he is playing.”

Venables remained panicked someone would find out his true identity and Sky News reported that he was even trained in counter-surveillance by police officers, advised that he would have to “live and hold a lie” for the remainder of his life, for his own safety. He also struggled to find work and, after dropping out of college, he was debt-ridden with no employment and was forced to leave his flat.

Venables had been treated by clinical psychiatrist Dr Susan Bailey from the age of ten but when he marked his 21st birthday, he was signed off by Dr Bailey who recommended he get an adult psychiatrist.

She highlighted Venables’ ongoing fears of being discovered by those wanting revenge and also emphasised the need to be aware of Venables’ abnormal “psychosexual development”.

However, it was ultimately decided unnecessary for an adult psychiatrist that was found to either meet or work directly with Venables, on account of him being assessed as ‘low risk’.

In the years that followed his release, however, Venables’ behaviour got him into trouble on multiple occasions. By 2007, Venables had begun to drink heavily and take drugs, including cocaine and mephedrone. The following September, he was arrested on suspicion of affray following a fight with a man who alleged Venables had assaulted his girlfriend.

Both were charged with a public order offence, which was later dropped as prosecutors were unable to prove he wasn’t acting in self-defence. Venables was handed a formal warning for having broken a “good behaviour” clause in his licence. He later received a caution that December for the possession of cocaine, after officers spotted him handling a container of white powder.

Following this incident, probation workers added a requirement to Venables’ licence, which ordered him to address his issues with alcohol and drugs, and he was also issued a curfew. It was also discovered that in 2004 Venables had struck up a relationship with the young mother of a five-year-old child, whom Venables claimed he had not met.

And in 2005, aged 23, Venables’ probation officer became aware of the killer dating a 17-year-old girl. It was later suggested that Venables’ string of numbers of “younger girlfriends” meant he was having a delayed adolescence.

Despite these string of problems, Venables really came to the attention of police again when vile child pornography was found on his computer in early 2010 and he was recalled to prison.

In 2011, The Times reported this discovery was made after Venables’ new identity was compromised at his workplace. As officers rushed to his home to take the killer into protective custody, he was found attempting to destroy his PC hard drive.

An examination of this hard drive led to the discovery of several dozen sickening images of child abuse that Venables had downloaded and even redistributed in some cases. Sentenced to two years for child pornography offences, Venables was released in 2013.

Venables was arrested again in 2017 and, in February 2018, he admitted to possessing videos containing sexual abuse as well as a “paedophile manual”.

Describing the images as “vile” and “heart-breaking”, the sentencing judge, Mr Justice Edis stated that 392 of these images were category A – the most serious class. Venables was jailed for 40 months, of which he had to serve a minimum of 20 months.

Venables failed to attend a two-day parole hearing in December 2023 when he claimed seeing James’ family “would harm his mental health”.

The hearing went ahead; however, after two weeks of deliberation the panel ruled Venables was “still a danger to children” and “could not be trusted”.

Next month, James’ mother, Denise, 57, will attend another parole hearing where she will hear the voice of her son’s killer for the first time in more than 30 years.

Speaking to the Mirror, Denise has said she will warn the board considering his release that Venables is “bigger and stronger” than he was when he tortured and killed James.

She said: “The parole board must remember, he’s not a 10-year-old anymore. He’s bigger, he’s stronger, he’s got more wits about him. He’s been educated to lie to his back teeth. My worry is that if he’s released, he’ll lose that protection, he’ll be looking over his shoulder the whole time, he’ll have a target on his back.

“He’s not going to like it in the real world. What is he going to do to get back inside?”

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