By Sam Tobin
LONDON, July 21 (Reuters) – Former British government minister Ann Widdecombe was killed by a man who struck her on the head 21 times with a hammer while she was eating lunch at home earlier this month, prosecutors told a London court on Tuesday.
Widdecombe, 78, a prominent figure in Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK party, was found dead at her home in rural southwest England on July 9 after being attacked the day before.
The killing shocked British politics, raising further concerns about politicians’ security, with two serving British members of parliament having been killed since 2016.
Joshua Kerry, a white British national from Rotherham in northern England, more than 250 miles (402 km) from Widdecombe’s home, appeared in court on Tuesday charged with her murder.
The bearded 28-year-old, who appeared in the dock at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court wearing a grey tracksuit, was not asked to enter a plea.
At a later hearing at the Old Bailey court, Kerry was remanded in custody until his next appearance in October.
Police have said they believe Widdecombe was targeted, although the motive remains under investigation. Prosecutors said an investigation into possible terrorism offences was ongoing.
CAMERA IN HOME CAPTURED INCIDENT
Prosecutor Kashif Malik earlier said a camera inside Widdecombe’s home had captured the attack.
Widdecombe had been due to be interviewed live on television on July 8 from her home but did not appear, Malik explained. 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 the recovered footage showed Kerry entering Widdecombe’s home while she was eating lunch and asking: “Don’t suppose you have bank cards and ID?”
Kerry, who was wearing black gloves and holding a hammer to his side so it was hidden from Widdecombe’s view, then struck her 21 times, Malik said.
He added that Kerry had tipped Widdecombe out of her chair onto the floor before taking her wallet and leaving, having been in the property for approximately two minutes.
Widdecombe was known for her socially conservative views, first as a junior minister in Conservative Prime Minister John Major’s 1992-1997 government and later as an immigration and justice spokesperson for Reform UK.
After stepping down from parliament in 2010, she appeared in a number of reality TV shows, including “Strictly Come Dancing”.
(Reporting by Sam Tobin and Michael Holden, editing by Sam Tabahriti, Gareth Jones and Andrei Khalip)
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