Joshua Kerry, a 28‑year‑old from Rotherham, has been charged with the murder of former MP Ann Widdecombe after prosecutors told a court she was struck 21 times on the head with a hammer at her Devon home while eating lunch. The Crown Prosecution Service authorised the charge following a counter‑terrorism investigation, with police still examining whether the attack had a political or terrorist motive.
Widdecombe, 78, was found dead at her bungalow in Haytor on Dartmoor on 9 July, nearly 24 hours after the alleged attack. Kerry was arrested at his home in South Yorkshire two days later and has been remanded in custody.
