Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Tom Barnes

Child killer Jon Venables will have parole hearing in private despite James Bulger’s mother’s pleas

  • The Parole Board has ruled that child killer Jon Venables will have his latest parole bid heard in private, rejecting a request for a public hearing.
  • James Bulger 's mother, Denise Fergus, alongside several media organisations, had requested an open hearing to combat misinformation that she said was retraumatising.
  • The board explained that a public hearing would make it extremely difficult for Venables to give evidence safely due to ongoing threats to his life.
  • Venables was 10 years old when he and Robert Thompson tortured and murdered two-year-old James Bulger in Merseyside in 1993.
  • Venables was recalled to prison in 2010 and 2017 for possessing indecent images of children, with his previous parole bid being rejected in 2023 because he still posed a danger.

IN FULL

James Bulger killer Jon Venables to have latest parole hearing in private

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.