Police have arrested a 28-yr-old man in South Yorkshire on suspicion of the murder of Ann Widdecombe.
They have not released a description of the man.
Police in the UK believe former MP and MEP Ann Widdecombe was attacked in her home nearly 24 hours before she was found dead and are hunting for a white male suspect, Devon and Cornwall Police said.
A 26-yr-old man arrested on suspicion of murdering Ms Widdecombe has been released from custody and is no longer part of the investigation, with Devon and Cornwall Police confirming the man’s release this morning following his arrest yesterday, reports RTE.
Ms Widdecombe, who was 78, was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor on Thursday after sustaining serious injuries.
Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said Ms Widdecombe’s death is being treated as suspicious but “we do not believe there is a wider risk to the public,” reports RTE.
He said: “We believe the attack took place on Wednesday 8 July at around 12.30pm.
“Our inquiries are moving at pace for a suspect who is believed to be a white male,” reports RTE.
Assistant Chief Constable Longman earlier said: “Our priority remains identifying those responsible and ensuring that all available evidence is thoroughly examined.
“Detectives continue to carry out numerous enquiries as part of the ongoing investigation and we remain committed to establishing the full circumstances surrounding the incident,” reports RTE.
He said the investigation was “moving at a significant pace,” adding: “We are deploying all of the necessary resources to find out exactly what has happened.
“We will release further information when we are able to do so. In the meantime, I would ask people not to speculate about what might have happened, particularly on social media.
“This is not only potentially harmful to our investigation but also deeply distressing for family and friends of Ms Widdecombe. The family have also asked for their privacy to be respected as they come to terms with what has happened,” reports RTE.
Devon and Cornwall Police previously said the case of her death is “not being treated as terrorism” and there is “no information” at this time to suggest it was a “politically-motivated crime.”
Ms Widdecombe was a Conservative MP between 1987 and 2010 for the Kent constituency of Maidstone, later Maidstone and the Weald, and held several ministerial positions in John Major’s government, reports RTE.
In her post-Commons career, she appeared on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing in 2010, partnered with Anton du Beke, and survived until the competition’s semi-finals thanks to the public vote.
She became a member of Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party in 2019 and served as an MEP representing South West England in Brussels between 2019 and 2020, reports RTE.
She later became immigration and justice spokeswoman for Mr Farage’s Reform UK and remained active in the media — she appeared on TalkTV on Wednesday, the day before she was found dead.
Ms Widdecombe was also due to be a guest on Channel 5’s Matt Allwright show on Wednesday afternoon but did not appear, as first reported by ITV, reports RTE.
She had exchanged messages with a researcher from the show but did not respond when they tried to contact her to join a Zoom call from home.
Calls and texts sent after the programme aired remained unanswered, ITV said, and the Channel 5 show’s team followed up with her agent later on Wednesday and on Thursday, reports RTE.
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