Prisoners have allegedly been circulating pictures online which show James Bulger’s murderer Jon Venables.
The photographs have allegedly been shared to websites which focus on prison life, with inmates said to be ‘lying in wait’ as they take their revenge.
Censors have attempted to take the images down. However, the prisoners have apparently shown a dedication to revealing the identity of Venables.
A source told The Sun:
I’ve put the picture up several times.
It keeps getting removed but I don’t care – I’ll keep posting it because he’ll be back out soon and people need to know what he looks like.
However, a spokesperson for the Prison Service has said:
There is absolutely no evidence or intelligence to suggest that these photos are being shared by serving prisoners.
Anybody who is convicted of sharing photographs of Venables online faces jail time under contempt of court laws.
Such individuals may also be also be fined if they share the name or image of a person who is not Venables or Thompson. This misidentification could result in a different person being targeted.
The Attorney General’s Office has released the following statement:
The terms of the order mean that if a picture claims to be of Venables or Thompson, even if it is not actually them, there will be a breach of the order.
Providing details of the new identities of Venables and Thompson or their whereabouts is also prohibited – this order applies to material which is on the internet.
There are many different images circulating online claiming to be of Venables or Thompson – potentially innocent individuals may be wrongly identified as being one of the two men and placed in danger.
The order, and its enforcement, is therefore intended to protect not only Venables and Thompson but also those members of the public who have been incorrectly identified as being one of the two men.
February 12, 2018, will mark 25 years since the murder of James Bulger.
Our thoughts are with his family.
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.