Widdecombe murder accused charged with preparing terrorist acts, including against Farage
Under section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006, a person convicted on indictment is liable to life imprisonment.
The man charged with the murder of Ann Widdecombe has now been charged with preparing acts of terrorism, including against Nigel Farage MP, Counter Terrorism Policing has said.
Joshua Kerry, 28, of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, was charged on 2 October with one count of preparation of terrorist acts, following authorisation from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
The charge relates to activity alleged to have taken place between 31 May 2024 and 8 July 2026.
The charge is brought under section 5(1)(a) of the Terrorism Act 2006. An offence is committed by a person who, with the intention of committing acts of terrorism, engages in any conduct in preparation for giving effect to that intention. The Act says it is irrelevant whether the intention and preparations relate to one or more particular acts of terrorism, acts of terrorism of a particular description or acts of terrorism generally.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans, the senior national coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, said: “We have been running a hugely intensive and complex investigation for some time.”
Evans said the investigation had been led by a dedicated team of “detectives, analysts, and forensic experts, working on multiple lines of enquiry”.
Frank Ferguson, Chief Crown Prosecutor of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said prosecutors had “carefully reviewed the evidence” before deciding to prosecute Kerry.
The CPS said its assessment of any case is not “in any sense a finding of, or implication of, any guilt or criminal conduct”, and that only a court can make findings of fact.
Ferguson reminded “all concerned” that proceedings against Kerry remain active and that Kerry has the right to a fair trial. Ferguson asked that there be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information “which could in any way prejudice these proceedings”.
Kerry is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 7 October 2026.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, writing on X, said the case “raises serious questions about the security of those in public life”. “My profound sympathies are with Nigel Farage and his family,” Mahmood wrote, adding that “an attack on anyone in politics is an attack on us all”.
What happened before
Widdecombe, 78, a former Conservative MP and Reform UK spokeswoman, was found dead at home in Devon in July 2026.
The CPS announced on 20 July 2026 that it had decided to prosecute Kerry for murder following the death of Ann Widdecombe in Haytor, Dartmoor. Kerry was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 21 July 2026.
The CPS said at the time that police enquiries into Kerry’s motives were ongoing, “including a potential political or terrorist connection”. The murder charge followed an investigation overseen by Counter Terrorism Policing, after an initial investigation by Devon and Cornwall Police.