British counterterror police say Ann Widdecombe killed in targeted attack
British counterterrorism officials say former MP Ann Widdecombe was murdered in a targeted attack, with a 28-year-old suspect detained under the Terrorism Act while investigators assess motive.
British counterterrorism police said former MP and television personality Ann Widdecombe was killed in a targeted attack, though the motive remains under investigation. A 28-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and terrorism offences and is being held under an extended detention warrant that permits further questioning for up to a week.
"It is clear that this was a targeted attack," Laurence Taylor, head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, told reporters. "We are still working to understand the extent of any planning or preparation, and the motivation that sits behind that attack."
Widdecombe, 78, was found dead the day after she failed to appear for a scheduled television interview. Police said she sustained serious injuries but did not release a cause of death. The suspect was apprehended in South Yorkshire, more than 200 miles from the rural village of Haytor on the edge of Dartmoor National Park where the killing occurred. Searches of his residence uncovered evidence of planning, prompting a re-arrest on suspicion of commission, preparation or instigation of terrorist acts.
The investigation was transferred to counterterrorism units on Monday after new evidence emerged, overturning earlier statements by Devon and Cornwall Police that the incident was not terror-related. The police commissioner for the area defended the change, noting that investigations can evolve rapidly as information develops.
Widdecombe served in the House of Commons from 1987 to 2010, including a stint as prisons minister, and later appeared on reality-TV programmes such as “Strictly Come Dancing” and “Celebrity Big Brother.” She subsequently joined the Brexit Party and, most recently, the Reform UK party.