A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of former MP Ann Widdecombe, 78, following a major manhunt by Devon and Cornwall Police
Ann Widdecombe was found dead yesterday(Image: Wiktor Szymanowicz, Future Publishing via Getty Images)
A 26-year-old man has been detained in connection with the killing of former MP Ann Widdecombe, 78, following a large-scale manhunt for a white male.
Devon and Cornwall Police launched a murder inquiry earlier into the death of Miss Widdecombe, who was discovered deceased at her home in Haytor, Dartmoor, near Newton Abbot in Devon at 11:40am on Thursday (July 9).
At an afternoon press conference, Devon and Cornwall Police Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman confirmed that Miss Widdecombe’s death is not being treated as terror-related. Police also confirmed the man is British.
Miss Widdecombe, who had appeared on Talk Radio on Wednesday (July 8), was found to have sustained “serious injuries”. Police had previously confirmed a manhunt was under way for the white male, who has since been taken into custody.
The suspect has been identified as a white British man, arrested at an address in Newton Abbot, reports the Daily Star.
Addressing the press conference, Assistant Chief Constable Longman stated: “A 26-year-old man was arrested in Newton Abbot this afternoon on suspicion of the murder of Ann Widdecombe. The suspect, who is a white British national, remains in police custody while inquiries continue.”
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman further confirmed that Miss Widdecombe’s death was not being treated as a terrorist incident. He added: “Detectives from the force major crime investigation team have launched a murder investigation, and are conducting extensive inquiries into the circumstances surrounding Ms Widdecombe’s death.
“While we work closely with our partners and consulted counter-terrorism policing as part of our initial inquiries, the incident is not being treated as terrorism.
“A cordon remains in place at the property, while specialist officers continue forensic examinations. There are road closures in place around the scene, and the public will see significant police activity in the area while detectives and other officers continue house-to-house and CCTV inquiries.
“This is an extremely tragic incident. Our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of Miss Widdecombe in this very difficult time.”
Officers investigating the death of Ann Widdecombe have confirmed there is currently no indication that the killing was politically motivated.
The former Conservative minister, aged 78, went on to serve as a Brexit Party MEP before becoming a spokeswoman for Reform UK, and also gained widespread public recognition beyond her political career through her appearance on Strictly Come Dancing. Numerous tributes were paid to her earlier today, prior to police formally confirming their murder inquiry.
Speaking to reporters at Chequers before the arrest, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer broke his silence upon hearing news of the investigation. He said: “This is really shocking news, and my thoughts, I think all of our thoughts, will be with the family and friends of Ann Widdecombe at this awful time for them.
“Ann was a distinguished politician over many, many years with many achievements, and it’s a huge, huge loss.
“I’ve spoken to the chief constable this afternoon about the details and I think this is really important that this is a moment where we rise above any political differences, the political divide and say the single most important thing at the moment is that all of us and the public help the police identify the individual suspected and make sure he’s arrested as quickly as possible.
“He’s clearly dangerous, and I implore everybody who’s got any information in relation to him to help the police with their inquiries, get him into police custody.”
Potential future Labour Leader and next PM Andy Burnham has also commented on Miss Widdecombe’s death through a spokesperson. A spokeswoman for 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.”
Miss Widdecombe’s management company Cloud 9 urged anyone with information to get in touch with the police, stating: “We are absolutely devastated by this news following a very traumatic and upsetting 24 hours.”
The statement continued: “We are absolutely devastated by this news following a very traumatic and upsetting 24 hours.”
“We fully support the police in their investigations and we reiterate the family’s desire not to be contacted at this difficult time. We implore anyone who may have relevant information to contact Devon and Cornwall Police.”
Devon and Cornwall Police have established a Major Incident Public Portal [MIPP] where information, images or footage can be submitted. Alternatively, you can reach them by telephone on 101 or via their website, quoting reference 50260179119 and Operation Hunlen.
The link to the public portal is available here.
Information can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or at crimestoppers-uk.org..