British politician Ann Widdecombe, 78, was found dead in her home in Haytor, Devon, on July 9

Joshua Kerry, 28, from Yorkshire was charged with one count of murder on Monday night following an investigation led by counter-terrorism detectives

When found Widdecombe showed visible signs of head trauma

Widdecombe was hit on head 21 times with hammer, prosecutors said at Kerry’s arraignment

Former British MP and minister, Ann Widdecombe, 78, was found dead in her home in Haytor, Devon, on July 9, showing visible signs of head trauma. Widdecombe was hit on head 21 times with hammer, prosecutors said at arraignment of the murder suspect

Ann Widdecombe was hit on the head with a hammer 21 times at her home as she ate lunch in an attack that was caught on camera, prosecutors have told Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
The 78-year-old former Member of Parliament and Member of the European Parliament was found dead at her home in Devon on July 9, with “visible injuries” Exeter Coroner’s Court heard.
The political career of Widdecombe, a former Conservative minister and Reform UK spokeswoman, spanned decades, having served as Conservative MP for Maidstone in Kent for 23 years and was appointed to ministerial roles in Sir John Major’s government in the 1990s. She later represented South West England as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the Brexit Party. In 2023, she joined Reform UK as a party spokeswoman.
A suspect, Joshua Kerry, 28, from Rotherham in South Yorkshire, was first arrested on suspicion of murder two days after Widdecombe was killed.
He was later re-arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.
Kerry made an appearance at London’s Central Criminal Court, the Old Bailey, on Tuesday.
Prosecutor Kashif Malik said the man charged with her murder arrived at her house on July 8, in a red Vauxhall Corsa sedan and entered through the front door.
Kerry, who prosecutors say was in the property for two minutes and was wearing black gloves, then allegedly hit Widdecombe repeatedly with a hammer in her kitchen, tipped her from her chair and took her wallet before driving off.
When the suspect was first arraigned at the Old Bailey, prosecutor Alistair Richardson told the court that the attack on Widdecombe had been carried out with a “ferocity of violence”.

Joshua Kerry, [photo], is charged with the murder of former UK minister Ann Widdecombe. He was seen on CCTV arriving at her house on July 8. He’s accused of hitting her repeatedly with a hammer in her kitchen, tipping her from her chair and taking her wallet before driving off

Malik told the court that Widdecombe did not attend a prearranged online interview that had been scheduled for just before 1 pm on July 8.
The show’s production team tried to contact Widdecombe through her personal assistant, who then asked Widdecombe’s gardener to conduct a wellness check, the court heard.
Prosecutors said the gardener entered the house via the open front door on 9 July and found Widdecombe lying face down on her kitchen floor with a serious head injury. Emergency services were called, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.
He appeared emotionless in the dock and spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address during the short hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. He was not asked to indicate a plea.
The prosecutor told the chief magistrate that security camera footage from her home in Haytor, Devon, showed she had been fatally attacked the day before. Widdecombe, was eating lunch at home when a man walked in and asked whether she had bank cards, security footage showed.
The politician was struck 21 times on the head with a hammer during the fatal lunchtime attack, prosecutors said in a London court on Tuesday.
Police were still investigating whether there was a terrorism connection or political motivation for the attack, the prosecutor said.

Joshua Kerry appeared emotionless in the dock and spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address during the short hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. He did not enter a plea and motive has not been made public

The man in the video Joshua Kerry, was charged with one count of murder on Monday July 20, following an investigation led by counter-terrorism detectives.
Later on Tuesday July 21, he also appeared at the Old Bailey in London.
The court heard that a pathologist had given a provisional cause of Widdecombe’s death as a blunt force injury to the head.
An earlier inquest hearing, that was opened and adjourned on Tuesday, heard that emergency services were called on the day Widdecombe was found, but she was pronounced dead at 12:20.
The hearing was also told that while a post-mortem examination had taken place, “at this stage the precise medical cause of death has yet to be established”.
Following an order that the suspect be remanded in custody, it is expected that Kerry will be remanded at Belmarsh prison in south-east London, with his next court appearance for a case management hearing scheduled for October 9.
Furthermore, a provisional trial date has been listed for June 8, 2027.