{"id":528714,"date":"2026-04-13T15:33:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T15:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/528714\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T15:33:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T15:33:14","slug":"arrest-update-after-attack-on-james-bulgers-grave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/528714\/","title":{"rendered":"Arrest update after attack on James Bulger&#8217;s grave"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A 78-year-old man was arrested<\/p>\n<p>11:52, 13 Apr 2026Updated 12:18, 13 Apr 2026<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"James Bulger\" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0_JS142885967.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"James Bulger\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">James Bulger<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Merseyside Police issued an update this morning, Monday, April 13 after James Bulger&#8217;s grave was vandalised for the second time in six weeks. On Friday, April 10 <a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.liverpoolecho.co.uk\/all-about\/james-bulger\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\">James&#8217;s <\/a>mum Denise Fergus revealed her son&#8217;s grave had been vandalised and the heads of two cherubs had been removed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Denise, whose two-year-old son was kidnapped and killed in 1993, had his resting place repaired after an attack in February. The heads of two cherubs had to be replaced. She praised an &#8220;Army of Heroes&#8221; who raised more than \u00a320,000 to repair his resting place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">But, at lunchtime on Friday she discovered &#8220;evil vandals! had once again scythed the heads of the treasured cherubs at the Merseyside grave site.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1776094393_964_0_JamesJPG.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"James Bulger's grave smashed for second time\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">James Bulger&#8217;s grave smashed for second time<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Merseyside Police renewed its search for the thugs and following enquiries a 78 year-old man from <a aria-label=\"KirkbyLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.liverpoolecho.co.uk\/all-about\/kirkby\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Kirkby<\/a> was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and theft. In an update today, Monday, April 13 police said the man has been released on conditional bail.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Anyone with information on this incident is urged to call 101 or DM @MerpolCC on social media, quoting reference number 26000282253.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: <a aria-label=\"https:\/\/crimestoppers-uk.org\/give-information\/forms\/gLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcrimestoppers-uk.org%2Fgive-information%2Fforms%2Fgive-information-anonymously&amp;data=05%7C02%7CLeonora.Houston%40merseyside.police.uk%7Cbd4bb8566cec4bc0ea0408de97ab8400%7Cf3955ea24c5d4e27ab8df6f577fa122d%7C0%7C0%7C639114960085420069%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=JUxHJyro516AOMmMUFMgDmkmU63AewiA%2FxHREa3%2BQE0%3D&amp;reserved=0\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/crimestoppers-uk.org\/give-information\/forms\/g<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"James Bulger\u2019s mum Denise Fergus\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0_JHP_MDM_111022BULGER_09.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"James Bulger\u2019s mum Denise Fergus\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">James Bulger\u2019s mum Denise Fergus(Image: Julian Hamilton\/Daily Mirror)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Following the arrest on Friday, Temporary Detective Inspector Viki Lanceley said: &#8220;A man has now been arrested and we will continue to update and support James&#8217;s family as the investigation progresses.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">&#8220;I would encourage anyone with information to come forward directly to police as soon as possible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Get all the big headlines, pictures, analysis, opinion and video on the stories that matter to you by signing up to our<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/data.reachplc.com\/212764146160855\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> daily and breaking newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Sign up to our breaking news newsletter<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/data.reachplc.com\/212764146160855\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> here<\/a>. Follow us on<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.liverpoolecho.co.uk\/all-about\/twitter\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> X<\/a><a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LivEchonews\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> @LivECHONews<\/a> or on<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/liverpoolecho.co.uk\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> Bluesky @liverpoolecho.co.uk<\/a> &#8211; official Liverpool ECHO accounts &#8211;<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.liverpoolecho.co.uk\/\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> real news in real time<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">We&#8217;re also on<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/theliverpoolecho\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> Facebook\/theliverpoolecho<\/a> &#8211; your must-see news, features, videos and pictures throughout the day from the Liverpool ECHO.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Join the Liverpool ECHO Breaking News and Top Stories WhatsApp community to receive the latest news straight to your phone<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.liverpoolecho.co.uk\/news\/liverpool-news\/join-liverpool-echos-whatsapp-community-26664885\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\"> by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A 78-year-old man was arrested 11:52, 13 Apr 2026Updated 12:18, 13 Apr 2026 James Bulger Merseyside Police issued&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":528715,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[924,59,57,58,99757,83724,50,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-528714","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-kingdom","8":"tag-crime","9":"tag-gb","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-greatbritain","12":"tag-james-bulger","13":"tag-kirkdale","14":"tag-news","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom","17":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528714","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=528714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/528714\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/528715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=528714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=528714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=528714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}