Bulger killer’s online contact gets six months
Leslie Blanchard, aged 53, visited dating sites and viewed adult internet pornography on three separate occasions despite an order being put in place banning him from doing so.
Earlier this year it emerged that Blanchard had been in internet contact with Venables, who was convicted of murdering toddler James Bulger.
Passing sentence yesterday, Judge Anthony Pitts said: “Unbelievably, you took the risk of being found out and accessing that material, not once, but three times.
Blanchard, a kitchen fitter from Chelmsford, Essex, received a three-year community order at the same court in October last year after admitting to “arranging or facilitating a sexual offence against a child”, plus a series of child pornography offences.
He admitted breaching the order and accessing the websites on February 27, March 16 and July 20 this year.
The contact with Venables, who was given a new name after being convicted of the Bulger murder, took place in 2008.
Details of their internet relationship emerged in July when Venables pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey to child pornography charges. One of the charges related to allegedly distributing child pornography to Blanchard.
The Old Bailey heard that Venables, in messages to Blanchard, claimed to be a 35-year-old married woman called Dawn who abused her eight-year-old daughter.
The court heard yesterday that Venables and Blanchard shared material while chatting in an internet forum.
Venables offered to sell access to the child during a series of messages between the pair and a price was agreed, but Venables then broke off contact abruptly, saying Blanchard could not see the girl, the court was told.
Blanchard was hounded out of his home following publicity about the case, the court heard.
The judge said yesterday’s proceedings had nothing to do with Blanchard’s contact with Venables.
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