The uncle of a 28-year-old man being questioned over the murder of former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe has said his legs 'turned to jelly' when he learned of his nephew's arrest. Widdecombe, 78, was found dead at her home in Haytor on Dartmoor at 11:40am on Thursday after sustaining 'catastrophic head injuries'.
Suspect arrested 270 miles away
A white British man, 28, was arrested outside his home in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, nearly 300 miles away, on Saturday. He is still being held on suspicion of murder and on suspicion of commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism. The suspect is believed to have driven about 270 miles from Rotherham to Widdecombe's home, beaten her to death, and then driven back to South Yorkshire.
The suspect is not thought to have been known to South Yorkshire Police and was not on the radar of the government's counter-terror Prevent scheme. Counter-terrorism police are now leading the investigation into her death.
Uncle expresses disbelief
The suspect's uncle told the BBC: 'Things don't add up … To drive all that way and back in one day takes some doing. I would drive past his house nearly every day and 99 times out of 100 the car would be there.' He added: 'My legs went like jelly' upon finding out he had been arrested. He lives nearby but hasn't seen his nephew properly in a decade.
'He's the last person I would think would do anything like that,' the uncle said.
Neighbors describe reclusive lifestyle
Neighbors said the suspect rarely went out but was friendly when they did encounter him and would take in parcels for them. The 28-year-old is reported to have spent most of his time in his bedroom with his father, an amputee, doing 'everything for him' before his father died from cancer in December.
Neighbour Courtney Foster said: 'He used to take his dad out shopping while he was still alive, but since then he never really went out much.' CCTV appears to show him leaving the address five hours before Ann is believed to have been battered to death. A pole described by neighbours as 'a wooden baton' could be seen sticking out of the pocket of his cargo shorts.
Timeline of events
Ms Foster said a car left the property in Rotherham between 7:30am and 8am on Wednesday last week and returned around 5:30pm or 6pm. 'I was quite surprised at the time. I thought 'oh, the car's gone,' she said.
