Ann Widdecombe murder probe ongoing as Yorkshire man charged

Detectives are continuing to investigate any possible political or terrorist motivation for the murder of Ms Widdecombe after a 28-year-old man was charged with the killing.

Joshua Kerry, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday charged with murder, the Crown Prosecution Service said.

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He was first arrested on July 11, two days after the 78-year-old Reform UK spokeswoman was found dead at her home in Devon.

Speaking outside New Scotland Yard on Monday, head of UK Counter-Terrorism Policing Laurence Taylor said: “I want to make it very clear that our investigation into this individual, determining his motivations and any wider activity he may have been involved in is continuing.

Leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage with former Tory minister Ann Widdecombe (Image: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire)

“Given Ann Widdecombe’s profile and the targeted nature of the attack, determining the motivation, including any possible political motivation, remains an active avenue of investigation for our detectives.”

He said that detectives are working through more than 800 lines of inquiry, and asked for time for investigators to carry out the work.

Two days after he was arrested for murder, Kerry was additionally arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism, but has not been charged with this offence.

Head of Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor (Image: Erik Olsson/PA Wire)

Frank Ferguson, chief crown prosecutor of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “We have decided to prosecute Joshua Kerry for murder following a police investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe in Haytor, Dartmoor.

“Police inquiries into the defendant’s motives are ongoing, including a potential political or terrorist connection.”

Miss Widdecombe was first elected as a Conservative MP in Kent in 1987, and went on to become an MEP for the Brexit Party and then a spokeswoman for Reform UK.

Strictly Come Dancing partners Ann Widdecombe and Anton du Beke on the show (Image: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

She also found fame outside politics after starring in Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother.

Ms Widdecombe read Latin at Birmingham University before studying philosophy, politics and economics at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford, where she was involved in the Oxford Union.

While there she had embarked on a three-year romance, ending it in order to focus on her career.

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Otherwise she claimed to have no interest in sex, and never married.

Tributes were paid to her by figures across the political spectrum after her death, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood calling her “one of those rare politicians who was bigger than politics”.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham called for a serious review of MPs’ safety after she died, and Mr Taylor said officers are working with parliamentary officials to make politicians aware of protection measures that are in place.