A 28-year-old man has been arrested in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on suspicion of the murder of former Tory minister Ann Widdecombe, who was found dead at her home in Dartmoor.
Police were called to Ms Widdecombe’s property in Haytor at around 11:40am on Thursday, nearly 24 hours after she abruptly stopped responding to messages minutes before a scheduled interview.
Devon and Cornwall police said on Sunday that a British national was arrested some 220 miles away on Saturday evening and that they were not looking for anybody else in connection with the case at this time.
Detectives remain open minded as to a possible motive, but said there is nothing to suggest that there was a political motivation behind Ms Widdecombe’s death, and urged people not to speculate.
They also said the public has so far contributed more than 120 pieces of information that could help with the investigation and encouraged those with possible evidence that could help to get in touch.
Here’s what we know about what happened to Ann Widdecombe:
Who is the suspect arrested?
Late on Saturday, police said a 28-year-old man had been arrested in South Yorkshire on suspicion of the murder of Ms Widdecombe.
A statement said: “The suspect, who is a white British national, is now in police custody. Miss Widdecombe’s family have been informed of this development.
“We were supported by Counter Terrorism Policing North East and South Yorkshire Police who carried out the arrest on behalf of Devon & Cornwall Police. 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.”
An update on Sunday clarified that the arrest took place at an address in Rotherham. Police maintained that there is no evidence of a political motivation for the killing.
They believe there is no wider threat to the public and said they are not looking for anybody else at this stage.
Saturday’s arrest was the second in two days, after police swooped on a 26-year-old British national in Newton Abbot, some nine miles from Ms Widdecombe’s house.
The first suspect, who was also initially arrested on suspicion of murder, was released from custody and deemed no longer part of the investigation, police said in an update early on Saturday morning.
What have police said about murder probe?
Devon and Cornwall police announced they were treating the death as murder on Friday afternoon.
They said Ms Widdecombe had been found at home with “serious injuries” and appealed for anybody with information that could be helpful to come forward.
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman reiterated on Sunday: “Any relevant information, images or footage can be reported via our Major Incident Public Portal, and you can follow the links and QR codes available on our website to achieve this.”
“Information can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers.”
What are Ann Widdecombe’s last known movements?
Ms Widdecombe made her final public appearance in an remote interview with TalkTV at 8am on Wednesday morning.
Later that afternoon she was in contact with a researcher from Channel 5 ahead of a planned remote appearance on the Matt Allwright show at 1pm, per ITV.
WhatsApp exchanges seen by the broadcaster show the last message from Ms Widdecombe came at 12:19pm, reading, “Received! Panic over!!” about a missing email.
The texts show Ms Widdecombe read a 12:19pm reply suggesting that she message again if she had any issues, but did not open a further message timestamped 12:48pm asking her to join a Zoom meeting.
Five minutes later the chat show’s producer tried to call her, followed by a delivered but unread message asking: “Hi Ann is everything okay?”
Two more voice calls went without answer at 1:05pm and 1:14pm.
How have friends and politicians reacted?
Tributes have poured in from all sides of the political spectrum, with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, describing her as “an absolute force of nature” and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch calling her a “very fun and feisty woman who spoke her mind”.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said it was “a huge loss” and insisted it was important to “rise above any political differences” and focus on catching Ms Widdecombe’s killer.
“Ann was a distinguished politician over many, many years with many achievements, and it’s a huge, huge loss,” he told reporters at Chequers.
Mr Farage said he was “deeply, deeply upset” by the nature of her death, and that the nation was “a much, much poorer place without her”.
“Reform UK is certainly a much worse place without her. I was expecting to see her in Clacton over the course of the next few days. Sadly, that is not going to happen,” he said.
Strictly Come Dancing’s Anton Du Beke has said he was “devastated” to hear that Ann Widdecombe has died. The pair were partnered together on the BBC One dancing programme in 2010.
“She became a real friend. She was fun. She was upbeat. She was positive. She was supportive. We had an incredible time together and we stayed firm friends.”
A spokeswoman for Andy Burnham said: “Andy’s deepest condolences and thoughts are with Ann’s family today, in incredibly distressing circumstances. Ann gave a lifetime of public service, and it’s absolutely right that the police put all their resources into investigating this as swiftly as possible.”
Who was Ann Widdecombe?
Ms Widdecombe was well known for her bluntness and staunch socially conservative views, first as a junior minister in Conservative prime minister John Major's 1992-1997 government and latterly as an immigration and justice spokesperson for Nigel Farage's populist Reform UK.
Throughout her political career, she argued against abortion and opposed equalising the age of consent for homosexual and heterosexual relationships.
She also defended a policy of shackling pregnant prisoners during child birth to prevent their escape, and viewed single mothers as poor role models, but was unusual among Conservative lawmakers in opposing the hunting of foxes with hounds.
Widdecombe said she never had sex or experienced romance, and converted to Catholicism partly in protest at the Church of England's ordination of women as priests.
After leaving parliament, she appeared on the TV talent show Strictly Come Dancing in 2010. Despite criticism from the judges, she was popular with viewers. Later she said the show's decision to feature same-sex couples was out of keeping with its family audience.
Mr Farage said she “played a decisive role in getting Brexit over the line”.
