A troll accusing James Bulger’s mother of letting him ‘run around’ the shopping centre where he was abducted have been branded ‘heartless cretins’ by her husband.
Two-year-old James was snatched by his killers Robert Thompson and Jon Venables in Bootle, Merseyside in February 1993.
His mother Denise Fergus let go of his hand for a split second to pay for her shopping when the two 10-year-olds led him away.
But on the 25th anniversary of his death Mrs Fergus has been faced with ‘sick’ claims she ‘didn’t look after him’ before he was taken.
Stuart Fergus (pictured) has hit out at claims his wife Denise (right) let her son James Bulger ‘run around’ the shopping centre he was taken from, tortured and killed in February 1993
Two-year-old James was snatched by his killers Robert Thompson and Jon Venables (CCTV pictured) in Bootle, Merseyside in February 1993
Her husband has rubbished the troll’s comments, telling the Sunday Mirror: ‘Check the police records which state all CCTV was checked.
‘He wasn’t left to ‘run’ around the shopping centre.
‘Denise states she let go of his hand to get her purse and pay for some food… turned round and he was gone. Read her book, you absolute cretin.
‘Some people are so heartless and don’t seem to care… what an idiot!’
On the 25th anniversary of his death Mrs Fergus has been faced with ‘sick’ claims she ‘didn’t look after’ James (pictured)
The upsetting Facebook comments are believed to have been written by a grandmother living in north west England. Her account has since been blocked.
The heartless messages were posted after a harrowing ITV documentary that aired this week reflecting on Thompson and Venables shocking crimes a quarter of a century on.
Mrs Fergus said: ‘The tiny number of people posting negative comments are not worthy of comment. They are just sickening.’
Despite the social media taunts James’ mother says she has been ‘overwhelmed’ by the wave of supportive messages she received since the documentary debuted – James Bulger: A Mother’s Story with Trevor McDonald.
She wrote: ‘I’ve been overwhelmed by the many thousands of kind messages I’ve received and the generous donations sent to our ‘For James’ charity.
‘I can hardly express how deeply moved and touched I have been at the support that has poured in.’
The upsetting Facebook comments are believed to have been written by a grandmother living in north west England. Her account has since been blocked.
The heartless messages were posted after a harrowing ITV documentary that aired this week reflecting on Thompson (right) and Venables (left) shocking crimes a quarter of a century on.
The support has also seen her petition demanding a public inquiry into the handling of the case and Venables subsequent re-offending rocket.
When the petition surpassed 100,000 signatures yesterday Denise tweeted: ‘Wow we’ve done it again, thanks to everyone who have signed ad shared my petition.
‘Your support has once again been amazing, I’m so lucky to have you all on board.
‘You have been with me throughout my very long journey and have never given up. Thank you so much.’
The documentary saw Mrs Fergus open up her home, inviting broadcaster Sir Trevor McDonald to see how she remembers James.
Disturbing police tapes also revealed how the child killers blamed each other, with Thompson bursting into tears after his confession.
Pictured: Denise Fergus and her husband Stuart. She is separated from James’ father Ralph
Despite the social media taunts James’ mother (pictured) says she has been ‘overwhelmed’ by the wave of supportive messages she received since the documentary debuted – James Bulger: A Mother’s Story with Trevor McDonald
He told detectives: ‘He [Venables] was walking around the Strand. He grabbed hold of the baby’s hand and just walked around the Strand.
‘I told him to take him back. I’m getting all the blame. I’m going to get all the blame.’
Venables denied what had happened, insisting: ‘We never. We never. God’s honest truth.
‘We never. He’s a liar. I never got the boy. I never killed him mum.’
As the documentary continued, Mrs Fergus revealed she was ‘relieved’ when the two young boys who turned out to be her son’s killers walked off with him – assuming they would not harm another child.
She was ‘almost positive’ she was going to get her little boy back when it emerged it was two youngsters not adults that had abducted her son.
Thompson and Venables became the youngest killers in modern British history when they were convicted of James’ murder in late 1993.
She told the documentary: ‘I had a sigh of relief to be honest with you because he wasn’t with an adult, he was with two kids.
‘I thought, kids aren’t going to harm another child, so that’s what kept me sane really, thinking, I was almost positive I was going to get James back alive and well.’
She described the decision to go to the Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle as ‘last-minute’ and says it was the first time James was allowed out of his buggy.
She said: ‘He was out of his buggy – James was never out of his buggy so he felt a bit of freedom.
‘I let go of his hand just for a moment to get my purse out of my bag.’
But when she realised he had gone she started panicking, running from shop to shop asking where he was.
She added: ‘I was that distraught that one of the staff said to me, ‘calm down, come and have a cup of coffee’.
‘And I said to him, ‘a cup of coffee isn’t going to help me get my son back’.’
During the hour-long documentary Mrs Fergus also relived the nightmare moment she was told her son’s body had been found three miles from where he disappeared at the New Strand Shopping Centre in Bootle, Merseyside.
Police officers who dealt with the crime describe her ‘dropping to the floor in total distress’, with another branding it ‘the worst thing I’ve ever seen’.
Mrs Fergus said: ‘I just blanked out. I just remember when I came round seeing a load of people around me.
‘I’m thinking it can’t be true, it can’t be happening. One minute they’re going to come through that door and say they’ve made a massive mistake.’