Baby-voiced Jon Venables describes James Bulger murder in harrowing recording
WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT
Jon Venables and Robert Thompson were just ten years old when they committed the brutal murder of two-year-old James Bulger.
The boys were taken to separate police stations where they gave a total of 20 interviews over three days. And in chilling recordings, they can be heard recounting their roles in the killing in their tiny, almost baby-like voices.
"You're under caution and you do not have to say anything unless you wish to do so but anything you say may be given in evidence, now you understand that don't you, Jon?" a stern-voiced police officer told Venables as he read his rights. "Yeah," the small voice of a young boy answered.
Venables - who has returned to prison twice since being released for James' murder and today had his bid for freedom rejected by a parole board - was then shown a still from the CCTV footage that shows the two boys leading James away from the busy shopping centre in Liverpool. "That's me, that's me and Robert," he said. "So the boy holding James' hand is you?" the police asked. "Yeah," he admitted.
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Both Venables and Robert Thompson were 10 years-old when they tortured and killed 2 year-old James Bulger (Getty Images)"And the boy ahead of you in the dark jacket and trousers is Robert Thompson. And what was it you told us?" "That I killed James," he confirmed.
He added in a tiny voice: "I can't tell you anything else, 'cos that's the worst bit." He confessed: "We took him on the railway track... then it was Robert's idea to kill him," he said.
"Have we finished now 'cos I can't speak any more?" he choked up. But in Thompson's interview, he blamed Venables for the killing.
The harrowing interview tapes were revealed in a documentary in 2018 examining whether or not justice was done. The Bulger Killers: Was Justice Done? sparked anger after viewers criticised the Channel 4 show for "sympathising" with the toddler's killers. Viewers were shocked when experts "defended" the 10-year-old murderers saying they made "an awful mistake".
Robert Thompson, pictured, claimed Venables had been the ringleader (Getty Images)After spending just eight years in custody, Britain's youngest killers were released and given lifetime anonymity in the UK. Speaking on the programme, Robert Thompson's solicitor Dominic Lloyd said: "Many years after the trial a juror said 'we found them guilty of murder but we didn't have the option to find them guilty of being two very bewildered and frightened little boys who made an awful mistake and need a lot of help'."
But his comment sparked anger from viewers. "It wasn't fair to interview him. He was in great distress' And what about the little, innocent boy he killed??! I can't believe people find excuses for these murderers. It's beyond me," one viewer tweeted.
Another added: "An awful mistake??!! They didn't kill him in an accident it was premeditated and they tortured that poor baby. How can people defend their actions .#TheBulgerKillers."
"An awful mistake for 10 year olds is shoplifting not murdering a 2 year old FFS," another angry viewer tweeted.
The reaction prompted James' mum Denise Fergus to let supporters know she had nothing to do with the programme. "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.
Few will ever forget the chilling footage of two 10-year-old boys holding a toddler's hand as they led him to his death. The documentary featured interviews with those involved in the 1993 trial, including James' dad Ralph Bulger, Jon Venables' solicitor Laurence Lee and detective sergeant Phil Roberts, who interviewed Robert Thompson.
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The toddler's mum Denise Bulger was at the counter of a butchers in the Strand shopping centre in Bootle, Liverpool, on February 12, 1993, when she briefly let go of her son's hand to get some change from her purse. When she turned around moments later, her son was gone.
Grainy CCTV footage later showed the innocent toddler being led away by Venables and Thompson, who marched the little boy through the streets of Bootle for two miles - a walk that would have taken hours given his size. 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'.
A video still of James Bulger being led away by his killers in the 'New Strand' shopping centre in the Bootle area of Liverpool (PA)When they finally came to a disused railway track near the police station, the murderous duo killed James and hid his body under bricks. A pathologist later said that there were so many injuries - 42 in total - that not one could be isolated as the cause of the little boy's death.
Security launched a search for James inside the centre and James' family searched for their son overnight. Three days later his body was found, and three days after that a tip-off came from a shopkeeper who had seen two boys playing truant on the day James went missing and gave police two names - Jon Venables and Robert Thompson. Neither gave evidence to the court, but were found guilty after an officer told how Venables admitted the murder, saying, "We did it. Will you tell his mum I'm sorry?"
Why was the trial controversial?
The pair were tried for the abduction and murder of James as adults owing to the fact they were over 10, which is legally deemed to be the age of criminal responsibility. A police officer remembered Venables being so small that his legs didn't touch the floor as he sat in the custody office after his arrest.
The base of the dock floor at Preston Crown Court had to be raised 18 inches so each boy could see over it. In 2010, Meggie Atkinson, then children's commissioner for England, called for the age of criminal responsibility to be raised to 12 in light of the trial.
"The age of criminal responsibility in this country is 10 – that's too low. It should certainly be moved up to 12; in some European countries it is 14," she said. "In terms of knowing what the full consequences of your actions are, you are into older childhood or adolescence.
"Youngsters are usually tried in a youth court, [Thompson and Venables] were tried in an adult court. What they did was exceptionally unpleasant and the fact that a little boy ended up dead is not something the nation can easily forget. But they shouldn't have been tried in an adult court because they were still children."
James Bulger was just a toddler when he was brutally murdered (Press Association)
James pictured with his loving mum, DeniseChildren accused of a crime are usually granted anonymity, but at the end of the trial the judge allowed both to be named, "because the public interest overrode the interest of the defendants." In 1999, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the pair did not receive a fair trial and awarded costs and expenses of £29,000 to Jon Venables and £15,000 to Robert Thompson. Lawyers for the pair argued that the adult court venue and publicity made it impossible for the schoolboys to be given a fair trial.
How long were they sentenced to?
They pair was ordered to be detained at her majesty's pleasure - meaning indefinitely - but in 2001, a six-month review by the parole board found they were no longer a threat to public safety and they were released on life licence after serving just eight years.
Both were banned from ever returning to Liverpool and given new identities at a reported cost of £1.5million. James' mother Denise believes they should have remained in jail for life and has tirelessly campaigned against their rights to anonymity.
In March 2010, Venables was recalled to prison for downloading and distributing more than 100 images of child abuse. He was jailed for two years before being granted parole again in July 2013. In 2017 he was arrested and recalled to jail on suspicion of possession of images of child sex abuse. Venables admitted possessing child abuse images and a "paedophile manual" after being caught with 1,170 indecent photos of children on his laptop, the Old Bailey was told.
James Bulger's father Raph and mother Denise were both in court to witness proceedings. He was jailed for 40 months for his crimes - three years and four months.
Meanwhile, Thompson has not re-offended since his release, and is believed to be in a long-term relationship with a man who knows who he really is.
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