The Crown Prosecution Service announced on Monday afternoon that it has charged a man with one count of murder in connection with the death of Brexit heroine Ann Widdecombe.
Joshua Kerry, 28, of Byrley Road in Rotherham, is set to appear on Tuesday before the Westminster Magistrates’ Court, where he will answer the charge of murdering former government minister Ann Widdecombe, who was killed in her Dartmoor home earlier this month at the age of 78.
While initial comments by the Devon and Cornwall Police claimed that there was no evidence for a political motive for the alleged murder, this was later overturned, and Counter Terror Policing South East took over the investigation.
Kerry’s charge on Monday was authorised by the Counter Terrorism Division of the Crown Prosecution Service, the CPS said in a statement.
The chief prosecutor for the Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, Frank Ferguson, 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.”
Widdecombe, a strident free speech advocate and devout Christian, had been a mainstay of British public life for decades, serving as a Member of Parliament for Maidstone from 1987 to 2010, during which time she served as a government minister in the John Major government.
After leaving parliament, she rebranded herself as a pop culture figure, appearing on reality television programmes such as Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother, while penning multiple novels.
She was a vocal supporter of the Vote Leave campaign during the 2016 Referendum to withdraw from the European Union, after which Widdecombe returned to politics to serve as a Member of European Parliament for Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party. At the time of her death, she was serving as a spokesman for Farage’s rebranded Reform UK party.