What happened to Ann Widdecombe as suspect investigated by counter-terror police
The suspected murder of veteran politician Ann Widdecombe is being investigated as an act of terrorism, police said.
Counter-terrorism police re-arrested a 28-year-old man on suspicion of committing, preparing or instigating terrorist acts. He was first detained on suspicion of murder in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on Saturday evening, after Devon and Cornwall Police previously said there was no indication the attack was linked to terrorism.
Police were called to Ms Widdecombe’s property in Haytor at around 11.40am on Thursday, nearly 24 hours after Widdecombe suddenly stopped responding to messages minutes before a scheduled meeting.
CTP said in a statement on Monday that “new information and evidence” had emerged, meaning they were leading the investigation and would pursue multiple lines of investigation to determine the motivation for this attack.
Here’s what we know about what happened to Ann Widdecombe:
Who is the arrested suspect?
Late on Saturday police said a 28-year-old man was arrested in South Yorkshire on suspicion of Ms Widdecombe’s murder.
In a statement made that evening by Devon & Cornwall Police, the following statements were made: “The suspect, a white British national, is currently in police custody. Ms Widdecombe’s family has been informed of this development.”
“We were supported by Counter Terrorism Police North East and South Yorkshire Police, who made the arrest on behalf of Devon & Cornwall Police. There is currently no information to suggest this is a terrorism-related incident and as a force we remain the priority of the investigation.”
An update on Sunday revealed the arrest took place at an address in Rotherham, more than 200 miles from Ms Widdecombe’s home in Haytor. They said they are not looking for anyone else at this stage.
CTP announced on Monday that the detained person was re-arrested on suspicion of committing, preparing or provoking terrorist acts. This gives police the power under the Terrorism Act to detain a suspect for up to 14 days without charge.
Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood told the House of Commons on Monday that the suspect was not recognized by the government’s counter-extremism scheme Prevent.
Saturday’s arrest was the second in two days after police attacked a 26-year-old British national in Newton Abbot, about nine miles from Ms Widdecombe’s home.
The first suspect, who was initially arrested on suspicion of murder, has been released from custody and is no longer considered part of the investigation, police said in an update early Saturday morning.
What did the police say about the murder investigation?
National Counter Terrorism Police Chief Lawrence Taylor said on Monday that the incident was now being treated as an act of terrorism, after Devon and Cornwall police announced on Friday afternoon that they were treating the death as a murder.
The counter-terrorism police chief said: “Building on the progress made by our colleagues at Devon and Cornwall Police, we now have new information and evidence which means Counter-Terrorism Police are leading the investigation. “We are pursuing multiple lines of inquiry to establish the motivation for this attack.
“Our priority is to move this investigation forward quickly with all the means at our disposal. If anyone has any information, please share it with the police.”
“We thank local communities, the public and the media for their ongoing support and patience and ask that they continue to support us through the next phase of the investigation.”
They said Ms Widdecombe was found at her home with “serious injuries” and appealed for anyone with any helpful information to appeal. come forward.
What are the last known movements of Ann Widdecombe?
Ms Widdecombe made her final public appearance in a remote interview with TalkTV at 8am on Wednesday morning.
That afternoon, he contacted an investigator from Channel 5 ahead of his planned remote appearance on the Matt Allwright program at 1pm, ITV reported.
WhatsApp correspondence seen by the broadcaster shows Ms Widdecombe’s last message arrived at 12.19pm: “Received! Panic over!!” It’s about a lost email.
The messages show Ms Widdecombe read a reply at 12.19pm advising her to text again if she had any problems, but did not open another message with a time stamp of 12.48 asking her to join a Zoom meeting.
Five minutes later the chat show’s producer tried to call her, followed by a forwarded but unread message: “Hi Ann, is everything okay?”
Two more voice calls went unanswered at 13.05 and 13.14 in the afternoon.
How did friends and politicians react?
Following CTP’s statement, Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood made a statement in the House of Commons on Monday afternoon.
He said the suspect was not recognized under the anti-terrorism prevention program.
He said: “My thoughts today are with Ann’s family, friends and everyone who loved her.”
Praise poured in from across the political spectrum, with reformist UK leader Nigel Farage describing her as “an absolute force of nature” and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch describing her as “a feisty woman who is great fun and speaks her mind”.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said it was a “huge loss” and stressed it was important to “overcome any political differences” and focus on catching Ms Widdecombe’s killer.
“Ann was an outstanding politician who had many achievements over many years and this is a very, very big loss,” he told reporters in Chequers.
Mr Farage said he was “deeply, deeply saddened” by the nature of her death and that the nation was “a much, much poorer place without her”.
“Reform England is certainly a much worse place without him. I was expecting to see him at Clacton in the next few days. Unfortunately that will not happen,” he said.
Strictly Come Dancing’s Anton Du Beke said he was “devastated” to hear of Ann Widdecombe’s death. The pair worked together on the BBC One dance show in 2010.
“He became a true friend. He was fun. He was optimistic. He was positive. He was supportive. We had an incredible time together and remained firm friends.”
A spokesman for Andy Burnham said: “Andy’s deepest condolences and thoughts are with Ann’s family who are in incredibly distressing circumstances today. Ann has given a lifetime of public service and it is absolutely right that the police use all their resources to investigate this incident as quickly as possible.”
Who was Ann Widdecombe?
Ms Widdecombe was known for her outspoken and socially conservative views, first as a junior minister in Conservative prime minister John Major’s 1992-1997 government and later as the immigration and justice spokesperson for Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK.
Throughout his political career, he opposed abortion and opposed equalizing the age of consent for homosexual and heterosexual relationships.
He also advocated the policy of chaining pregnant prisoners at birth to prevent them escaping, and viewed single mothers as poor role models, but was unusual among Conservative MPs in opposing the hunting of foxes with hounds.
Mrs Widdecombe, who was neither married nor had children, converted to Catholicism partly in protest of the Church of England’s ordination of women as priests.
After leaving Parliament, she appeared in the TV talent competition Strictly Come Dancing in 2010. Despite criticism from the jury, it was popular with viewers. He later said that the decision to feature same-sex couples on the program was incompatible with family audiences.
Mr Farage said he “played a decisive role in getting Brexit over the line”.
