JAMES Bulger’s grave has been vandalised for the second time in six weeks – leaving his heartbroken mum “absolutely disgusted”.
Denise Fergus described those responsible as “evil”, adding: “I am devasted” – with her tragic son’s resting place only just repaired after a similar incident in February.
Little James was just two when he was kidnapped, tortured and killed in February 1993 by 10-year-old schoolboys Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, who snatched him from a shopping centre in Bootle, Merseyside.
Denise had praised the “Army of Heroes” who raised more than £20,000 to repair her son’s grave earlier this year.
But was left heartbroken again yesterday afternoon when she discovered the heads of the two marble cherub statues at the grave site in Kirkdale Cemetery had been “scythed off” and remain missing.
Denise told The Mirror: “I am absolutely disgusted that James’ grave has been demolished and devastated again.
“It has broken our hearts. My heart sank when I found out about it this morning.”
She continued: “How evil do you need to be to vandalise and destroy a child’s grave. I am devastated. We must find this person.”
Denise said she has informed the police and urged anyone with information to come forward.
Police had previously said it received a report on February 26 that the two statues had been damaged, while a smaller angel had been put in the bin and a teddy bear stolen.
A GoFundMe page subsequently raised more than £23,000 for repair work.
Denis said that first incident had left the family “in bits”, describing how she “burst into tears” when she found out.
The cherubs had been at the gravesite for over 30 years.
Following James’ death, Denise and husband Stuart set up the James Bulger Memorial Trust to support other families going through hardships.
Venables and Thompson were found guilty of James’s abduction and murder on November 24, 1993 – making them the youngest people to be jailed for murder in 250 years.
The monsters had poured modelling paint into his eyes, stoned him and clubbed him with bricks, before leaving him on the railway line to be hit by a train.
At 18 years old, Venables and Thompson were both released from a young offenders’ institution under licence in June 2001.
After intensive rehabilitation, the pair were handed new identities.
Thompson has not re-offended since being released on licence when he was 18 years old.
But Venables has been recalled to jail twice since he was first released in 2001 for possessing indecent images of children.
Venables’ new identity has been changed twice after he told friends he was a convicted murderer.
