A man has been charged with theย murder ofย Ann Widdecombeย at her home in Devon.
Joshua Kerry, 28, from Rotherham will appear at Westminster Magistratesโ Court on Tuesday morning. He currently remains in police custody.
The 78-year-old formerย Toryย minister andย Brexitย Party MEP was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor on July 9 having suffered โserious injuriesโ.
But detectivesย believe the Reform spokeswoman was killed at around 12.30pm the day prior, shortly after giving a TV interview.
Frank Ferguson, Chief Crown Prosecutor of the CPS Specialย Crimeย and Counter Terrorism Division said on Monday evening: โWe have decided to prosecute Joshua Kerry for murder following a police investigation into the death of Ann Widdecombe in Haytor, Dartmoor.
โPolice enquiries into the defendantโs motives are ongoing, including a potential political or terrorist connection.
โOur 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.โ
Speaking outside of Scotland Yard the force confirmed that they are no longer looking for anyone else in connection with this case, but they are still working on determining the motivation for this attack.
Joshua Kerry, 28, who has been charged over the death of Ann Widdecombe. Pictured taking part in a charity fundraiser to guess the number of Easter eggs in a jar
The former MP is believed to have been killed in her Dartmoor home on July 8, with her body discovered 24 hours later
Pictured: Police searching Kerryโs address in Rotherham, South Yorkshire
Head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, said: โI would like to firstly offer my deepest condolences to the family of Ann Widdecombe, and to everyone who knew and loved her. The impact she had on public and political life in this country has been clear to see since her death on the 8th of July.
โI hope some of the tributes paid over the last week have been of comfort to her family, who are also being supported by our specialist family liaison officers.
โIt remains the case that we are notย looking for anyone else in connection with this incident.
โI know there has been significant interest in this case โ and rightly so. I want to make it very clear that our investigation into this individual, determining his motivations and any wider activity he may have been involved in is continuing.
โGiven Ann Widdecombeโs profile and the targeted nature of the attack, determining the motivation, including any possible political motivation, remains an active avenue of investigation for our detectives.โ
Mr Taylor said much like all murder probes, understanding the โwhyโ has been a key part of the forceโs probe.
Heย added: โThis has been, and remains, a particularly intensive and complex investigation.
โOver the last week, our teams have gathered a huge amount of information, leading to over 800 lines of enquiry. Each of those needs assessing, carefully and thoroughly, and I ask that we are given the time to do that.
โShould Counter Terrorism Policing identify further offences, we will liaise with the Crown Prosecution Service and work to submit evidence where appropriate.
โAs always, to ensure the best outcome for victims and their families, we must do this right, not just quickly. And I reiterate my ask forย the support of the public in this.
โI know many have been understandably concerned about their own safety after this horrendous attack, particularly after hearing about the nature of the attack she endured, in her own home.
โWe are working closely with the Speaker of the House and the relevant authorities to ensure elected officials are aware of what we have in place to protect them.
โAs criminal proceedings are now underway, and to avoid impeding the judicial process, we will not be making any further comment on the investigation unless absolutely appropriate.
โI would like to thank the public,ย the media, and those right across the political spectrum for their engagement and support whilst we progress this challenging investigation.
โI ask for patience as our teams do their work, thank you for your support so far.โ
Head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, announced Kerry had been charged this evening
Ann Widdecombe, a former MEP and Tory minister, appearing on TalkTV on July 8, believed to be the day she was killed
A cordon around Ms Widdecombeโs bungalow in Haytor on Dartmoor
Devon and Cornwall Police were on the case before counter-terror officers took over.
Kerry, a former maintenance scheduler at a lift firm, lived alone on the Kimberworth Park estate following the death of his father.
The 28-year-old was pictured in 2022 holding up a jar ofย Easterย eggs as part of a charity fundraiser for a local charity.
Sharing the image, colleagues describedย Kerry as โpart of the engine roomโ of the firm.
Neighbours last week described him as polite, โquiet and shyโ, saying he would take the bins out for them or hold on to parcels on their behalf.
Last week Head of Counter Terrorism Policing Laurence Taylor said officers believed that Ms Widdecombe was the victim of a โtargeted attackโ but were still looking into the โmotivationโ behind her killing.
Kerry was arrested on suspicion of murder on July 11 after officers โ some of them armed โ descended on his council house in South Yorkshire.
However two days later heย wasย re-arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.
Counter Terrorism Policing South East (CTPSE) said new information and evidence had come to light, prompting it to take over the investigation.
Officers initially arrested a 26-year-old man in Devon the day after Ms Widdecombeโs body was found โ but he was released the following morning and is no longer part of the investigation.
Ms Widdecombeโs final texts before her death possibly pinpoint the moment she was killed.
She was engaged in a conversation with aย Channel 5ย TV executive when her messages suddenly stopped withoutย explanation.
The exโTory minister was found deadย at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor after sustaining serious injuries
A producer was discussing with the former MP her scheduled appearance on Channel 5โs Matt Allwright show on July 8.
In a WhatsApp conversation shared withย ITVย News, the producer was discussing details about the appearance with Ms Widdecombe and asked her to join a Zoom call from her home.
The WhatsApp chat shows they were regularly exchanging messages between 12.14pm and 12.19pm.
The last message Ms Widdecombe sent at 12.19pm said: โReceived! Panic over!!โ
A WhatsApp โdouble blue tickโ receipt shows Ms Widdecombe did read a response sent at 12.19pm, but did not read any of the subsequentย messages from the producer, with the first follow-up sent at 12.48pm.
The producer attempted to call Ms Widdecombe numerous times but received no answer.
At 12.55pm the producer asked: โHi Ann is everything ok?โ
At 1.27pm Allwright confirmed live on his show that Widdecombe was scheduled as a guest, but that she had not turned up.
The showโs production team followed up with Ms Widdecombeโs agent later that day and the one after.
All of the WhatsApp messages have been passed on to the police.
Devon and Cornwall Police later said it is believed that Ms Widdecombe was attacked onย July 8 at around 12.30pm.
She was a Conservative MP in Kent between 1987 and 2010 and held several ministerial positions in Sir John Majorโs government.
Ms Widdecombe appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2010 and Celebrity Big Brother in 2018.
She served as an MEP for the Brexit Party until Britain left the European Union, becomingย immigration and justice spokesperson after it became Reform UK in 2023.
A hearing is scheduled at County Hall in Exeter at 10am on Tuesday to open an inquest into her death.
