UK police arrest a 28-year-old murder suspect after former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe was found dead at home
LONDON: British police said late Saturday they had arrested a suspect over the alleged murder of veteran right-wing politician Ann Widdecombe, hours after releasing a man they detained earlier.
The 78-year-old former Conservative minister was found dead with “serious injuries” on Thursday at her home in Devon, southwest England, according to police.
Devon and Cornwall Police said a 28-year-old man was arrested at an address in South Yorkshire on Saturday evening on suspicion of murder.
“The suspect, who is a white British national, is now in police custody,” the force said in a statement on Facebook.
Police said Widdecombe’s family had been informed of the arrest.
The development came after officers announced earlier on Saturday that a 26-year-old man arrested on Friday had been released from custody and was no longer part of the investigation.
“At this time, there is still no information to suggest that this is a terrorism related incident and as a force we retain primacy of the investigation,” the police said.
Devon and Cornwall Police Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said earlier officers thought Widdecombe was attacked 24 hours before her body was found.
“We believe the attack took place on Wednesday 8 July at around 12.30pm,” he said in the statement, adding that police had been searching for a white male suspect.
Longman had said on Friday he “had no information to say it was a politically motivated crime” and her death was not being treated as terror-related.
“Detectives continue to carry out numerous enquiries as part of the ongoing investigation and we remain committed to establishing the full circumstances surrounding the incident,” he said.
Widdecombe, a Conservative MP from 1987 to 2010, was known for her Christian faith and outspoken views.
In 1995 as prisons minister she was embroiled in a row after defending a policy of chaining pregnant prisoners to prevent them from escaping.
A staunch supporter of Brexit, Widdecombe left the Conservatives in 2019 to join the hard-right party of anti-immigration leader Nigel Farage.
Farage on Friday called her death a “terrible reflection on modern Britain”, in a video on social media.
“I do fear that for anybody in public life, or especially the political space, things have become even more dangerous today.”
