Hate campaign against Liverpool dad wrongly identified as Jon Venables

David Calvert

A Liverpool dad is in hiding after he was wrongly identified as child killer Jon Venables.

David Calvert, 27, has become the victim of a hate campaign after he was named as one of James Bulger's murderers in text messages sent across the country in the last few days.

And a vigilante group set up on Facebook, which called for Mr Calvert to be killed, had attracted 2,500 "fans" before it was taken down by administrators.

The dad-of-four has now pleaded with Justice Secretary Jack Straw for help.

Mr Calvert said: "I want Jack Straw to say, on the record, that I am not Jon Venables.

"This is destroying our lives. I've had to take my kids out of school.

"Perhaps if there had been more transparency over allegations against Venables this wouldn't be happening to me."

Mr Calvert's name was also sent to James's mother Denise Fergus, via social networking site Twitter.

Acknowledging Mr Calvert's plight, a spokesman for Mrs Fergus reiterated that Jack Straw must step in and sort out any confusion over the new identities of his killers.

The spokesman said: "Denise has sympathy for anybody who is wrongly identified as John Venables. It is something that no-one should have to suffer.

"But it is up to Jack Straw, the probation service and the court to sort out the mess they have created.

"They gave Venables a secret identity and nobody else should have to suffer the consequences."

Mr Calvert, who now lives in Fleetwood, was forced to deal with similar allegations in 2005.

Rumours about his identity began to circulate when he confided in a neighbour that he had spent time in a Liverpool prison.

Speaking at the time, Mr Calvert said: ""People have been turning up at my neighbours' houses with pictures of the killers printed off the internet and saying one of them is me.

"Now I hear that threats are being made and I'm worried that someone will come for me or my girlfriend or hurt my kids.

"I'm too scared to go out of the house now. I have these people saying they will get me out 'no matter what' and I'm terrified at what they might do."

Venables and his accomplice Robert Thompson were given new identities when they were released from custody in 2001.

Venables was recalled to prison last week after a "serious" breach of the terms of his release licence.

Various reports claim 27-year-old Venables, who was 10 when he and Thompson carried out the brutal killing in 1993, is being investigated over allegations of child pornography.

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