Revealed: The ‘quiet and shy’ 28-year-old suspect held over the murder of Ann Widdecombe
Smiling for the camera, this is the man suspected of killing Ann Widdecombe.
Pictured here for the first time, Joshua Kerry is accused of targeting the 78-year-old former Tory minister in her Devon home in a suspected terrorist attack.
The 28-year-old has lived alone in a council house in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, since the death of his father last year.
The family is well-known on the Kimberworth Park estate, with several members having served in the military.
His father Paul Yates, a ‘highly intelligent’ former steel industry research engineer, stopped work after losing a leg and was diagnosed with stomach cancer in his 60s.
After leaving school, Kerry got an office job at a lift company, where he was pictured in 2022 holding up a jar of Easter eggs as part of a charity fundraiser for a local charity.
Shared on social media by staff, he was described as ‘part of the engine room’ of the firm.
Neighbours this week described him as polite, ‘quiet and shy’, saying he would take the bins out for them or hold on to parcels on their behalf.
Joshua Kerry, 28, who is suspected of having killed Ann Widdecombe, pictured taking part in a charity fundraiser to guess the number of Easter eggs in a jar
Ann Widdecombe, a former MEP and Tory minister, appearing on TalkTV on July 8, believed to be the day she was killed
‘While his dad was unwell, Josh would take him out shopping in his car,’ one resident said. But after his father’s death Kerry stopped working.
Born in Rotherham, Kerry was raised with his elder brother and half-brother by their teaching assistant mother Siobhan after his parents split up.
‘Joshua was such a quiet boy,’ an uncle recalled this week. ‘Gentle and polite.
‘I used to go around when they were all little, and the eldest two used to be playfighting, rolling about on the floor, and Joshua would just be sat in the corner, watching them.’
His parents remarried and his siblings moved away to pursue successful careers, leaving him living alone in the council property.
An aunt said his father’s shock death around Christmas, when he was admitted to hospital ‘and never came out’, was ‘a nasty setback’ for Kerry.
Detectives believe the former Tory minister was killed around 12.30pm on Wednesday July 8.
Footage shows a group of armed officers descending on the 28-year-old’s property in Rotherham last Saturday
Forensic officers at the house in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, where Joshua Kerry lived alone
Floral tributes outside Ms Widdecombe’s home, including a framed photo of the former MP
According to neighbours, Kerry did not leave the house from Wednesday until Saturday when he was seen putting something into his wheelie bin.
Around 9pm that evening a dozen police officers swooped, arresting Kerry on suspicion of murder.
Courtney Foster, 25, who lives next door, said: ‘We saw officers running up. Some were armed. Then they banged on the door very loudly.
‘They asked him his name, he confirmed it and they took him away.’
The next day, his eight-year-old red Vauxhall Corsa, was towed.
A neighbour said he was ‘in shock’ over Kerry’s arrest.
‘He is pleasant, quiet as a mouse and from a lovely family,’ he said. ‘His mum and brothers were great – I couldn’t speak highly enough of them.’
Police initially treated the case as a botched burglary, but re-arrested Kerry on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism after allegedly discovering new ‘evidence’ to suggest a terrorist motivation.
He remains in custody and can be held for questioning until Tuesday.
