A 28-year-old man has been charged with murdering former MP Ann Widdecombe.
Joshua Kerry was arrested at his home in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on Saturday after the former Conservative prisons minister and Reform UK spokeswoman was found dead on 9 July.
Police said they believed the 78-year-old was attacked in her remote bungalow in Haytor, on Dartmoor in Devon, at around 12.30pm the previous day.
The suspect, who is accused of driving almost 300 miles to carry out the attack, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court tomorrow.
Announcing the charges, 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 enquiries into the defendant’s motives are ongoing, including a potential political or terrorist connection.
“Our prosecutors have worked closely with the police to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring this case to court, and we will continue working with them as their investigation progresses.
“We remind all concerned that proceedings against the defendant are active and he has the right to a fair trial.
“It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information which could in anyway prejudice these proceedings.”
Counter Terrorism Policing head Laurence Taylor previously said Ms Widdecombe’s death was a “targeted attack”, and confirmed that whether the suspect was targeting Reform UK figures would be a “line of investigation”.
The home secretary has said the suspect was not previously known to Prevent, the government’s anti-terror scheme.
Mr Kerry’s uncle has described his nephew as a “gentle giant” who is “polite” and “very shy”.
“Never in a million years” did he think his nephew would be linked to her death, adding he was “in total shock” when he found out he had been arrested, he told The Telegraph.
He also paid tribute to Ms Widdecombe, who he said was “forthright, strident, and principled”.
A video tour of her home had aired on television a week before she was killed.
First elected a Conservative MP in Kent in 1987, Ms Widdecombe went on to serve as an MEP for the Brexit Party and later spokesperson for Reform UK in her long political career.
She retired from politics initially at the 2010 general election, returning as a candidate for the Brexit party in European parliament nine years later in 2019.
In the intervening years, she found fame outside of politics after starring in reality shows Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother. She also starred in several pantomime productions and the ITV series ‘Ann Widdecombe Versus’.
In his last Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir Starmer said “we must do more to defend our democracy” following Ms Widdecombe’s death.
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