Murdered ex-UK minister Widdecombe was struck with hammer 21 times, London court told

By Sam Tobin

LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) – The man accused of murdering former government minister Ann Widdecombe struck her 21 times on the top of her head with a hammer during the attack at her home earlier this month, prosecutors told a London court on Tuesday.

Widdecombe, 78, who was a prominent figure in Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK but was no longer a member of parliament, was found at her home in rural southwest England on July 9 after being attacked the day before. 

Police have said they believe Widdecombe had been clearly targeted, although the motive was still under investigation.

Joshua Kerry, a white British national from northern England, appeared at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court charged with her murder.

The bearded 28-year-old, who appeared in the dock wearing a grey tracksuit, was not asked to enter a plea and will appear at the Old Bailey later on Tuesday.

CAMERA IN HOME CAPTURED INCIDENT

Prosecutor Kashif Malik said a camera inside Widdecombe’s home had captured the incident, during which she had been repeatedly hit with a hammer.

Widdecombe had been due to be interviewed live on television on July 8 from her home but did not appear, Malik said. The following day, her personal assistant asked her gardener to check on Widdecombe, and he found her on the kitchen floor.

Malik told the court that footage recovered from the camera showed Kerry enter Widdecombe’s home through the front door while she was eating lunch and ask her: “Don’t suppose you have bank cards and ID?”

Kerry was wearing black gloves and holding a hammer to his side, so it was hidden from Widdecombe’s view, before he hit her 21 times, Malik said.

The prosecutor added that Kerry then tipped Widdecombe out of her chair and onto the floor before taking her wallet and leaving, having been in the property for approximately two minutes.

Widdecombe’s murder shocked British politics and raised further concerns about the security of politicians, coming after two serving British members of parliament were also murdered in the last decade.

She was known for her socially conservative views, first as a junior minister in Conservative Prime Minister John Major’s 1992 to 1997 government and later as an immigration and justice spokesperson for Reform.

After she stood down from parliament in 2010, she also appeared in a number of reality TV shows, including “Strictly Come Dancing”.

(Reporting by Sam Tobin and Michael Holden, editing by Sam Tabahriti and Gareth Jones)

Brought to you by www.srnnews.com