Bulger killer Jon Venables set for parole review

Jon Venables has been jailed twice since he was released for the 1993 murder of James Bulger

The Parole Board has confirmed it will consider whether one of James Bulger's killers is eligible for release from prison.

Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, both 10, abducted the two-year-old from a Merseyside shopping centre in 1993 before murdering him.

Venables served eight years before being freed on licence in 2001 and given lifelong anonymity. He was recalled to prison in 2010 for having indecent child images on his computer and breaching parole conditions.

Four years after he was released in 2013, Venables was again jailed for having child abuse images on his computer.

James Bulger was abducted and killed by Jon Venables and Robert Thompson

The Parole Board confirmed the review would take place "following standard processes" after a referral by the justice secretary.

Venables and Thompson abducted James from the Strand shopping centre in Bootle on 12 February 1993 and led him to a nearby railway line before torturing and killing him.

Venables had an application to be freed rejected in 2020 following an assessment.

A later bid to be released in December 2023 failed after parole officers ruled he continued to pose a danger to children and could go on to reoffend.

'Extreme care'

A Parole Board spokesperson said: "Decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community.

"A panel will carefully examine a huge range of evidence, including details of the original crime, and any evidence of behaviour change, as well as explore the harm done and impact the crime has had on the victims.

"Members read and digest hundreds of pages of evidence and reports in the lead up to an oral hearing.

"Evidence from witnesses such as probation officers, psychiatrists and psychologists, officials supervising the offender in prison as well as victim personal statements may be given at the hearing.

"It is standard for the prisoner and witnesses to be questioned at length during the hearing, which often lasts a full day or more. Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority."

Thompson, unlike Venables, is not known to have reoffended since his release in 2001.