James Bulger’s murderer Jon Venables charged with possession of child abuse images

JON VENABLES, who tortured and killed toddler James Bulger, will have his identity protected as he faces court for possessing indecent photos of children.

ONE of toddler James Bulger’s killers has been charged over indecent images of children and his trial is to be held in private at an unnamed court, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.

Jon Venables was returned to prison in November after he was allegedly caught with child abuse images, The Sun reports.

The CPS released a statement on Friday revealing that he had been charged and was to face trial.

The statement said: “The man formerly known as Jon Venables has been charged with offences relating to indecent images of children and will appear in the Crown Court.

“In order that justice can be done, no further details are being released at this stage and the proceedings are subject to reporting restrictions.”

Venables and his friend Robert Thompson tortured and killed two-year-old James in Liverpool in 1993 when they were both aged 10.

British child murder victim James Bulger, killed in 1992 after being lured from a Liverpool shopping mall by Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, 11. Picture: Supplied

They abducted Bulger from a shopping centre and took him to a railway track where they tortured him, throwing paint in his eye, dropping a 10 kilogram iron bar on head, throwing bricks at him, putting batteries in his mouth and mutilating him.

They placed rubble on his body and left him on the train tracks, where he was eventually hit by a train.

The coroner’s report found he had died before he was hit by the train.

After serving eight-year sentences, Thompson and Venables were granted lifelong anonymity that saw them released under new identities in 2001.

Surveillance footage shows the abduction of two-year-old James Bulger from a shopping mall, February 12 1993 at 3:42pm near Liverpool, England. Getty Images

The latest child abuse image possession charge is the second in eight years; in 2010 Venables was sent to prison for two years for downloading and distributing indecent images of kids.

He was released on parole in 2013.

Following his arrest in November, the Attorney-General launched an investigation into claims his identity had been revealed on social media.

In 2013, two men who posted images they claimed to be of Venables and Thompson were given nine-month sentences, suspended for 15 months.

Breaking the injunction on identifying them carries a punishment of up to two years in prison.

This article originally appeared onThe Sun and has been republished with permission.