UK man charged over alleged terror plot targeting Nigel Farage amid Widdecombe murder case

A 28-year-old man in the United Kingdom has been charged with preparing acts of terrorism, including an alleged plot directed against Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. Counter Terrorism Policing said Joshua Kerry was charged on Friday with one count of preparation of terrorist acts. The charge comes as he is already accused of murdering former MP Ann Widdecombe.

Sponsored

Police said the terrorism charge relates to alleged activity between 31 May 2024 and 8 July 2026. Kerry, of Byrley Road in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, was charged after authorisation from the Crown Prosecution Service. He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday 7 October, according to police.

The case adds a further serious allegation to an investigation that has already drawn national attention because of the earlier murder charge. Kerry was arrested on suspicion of murder on 11 July, two days after Widdecombe, 78, was found dead at her property in Haytor on Dartmoor in Devon. Police said the terrorism investigation has involved detectives, analysts and forensic experts working across multiple lines of enquiry.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans, the senior national co-ordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, said the charge was the result of a "hugely intensive and complex investigation". She said the work of investigators across the counter-terrorism network had led to what she described as a very serious charge. Frank Ferguson of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division said prosecutors had worked closely with police and would continue to do so as the investigation continued.

Sponsored

The allegations are significant because they involve a named political figure and a separate murder case in the same proceedings. Farage is the leader of Reform UK, while Widdecombe had been a Conservative MP for Maidstone for 23 years and later became a Reform UK spokeswoman. The combination of terrorism allegations and a murder charge makes the case unusual and places it within the wider context of threats to public figures in the UK.

At this stage, police have not set out further details of the alleged conduct beyond the charge itself and the date range given in court-related statements. It is also not clear from the available information how the two sets of allegations are connected, beyond the fact that they involve the same defendant. The next key development is Kerry's appearance in court next week, where more procedural detail may emerge.

The case will now move through the courts while investigators continue their work. The charge has been brought under section 5(1)(a) of the Terrorism Act 2006, which covers preparation of terrorist acts. Further information is likely to depend on what is heard at Westminster Magistrates' Court and on any additional statements from prosecutors or police.

#JoshuaKerry #NigelFarage #AnnWiddecombe #CounterTerrorismPolicing #CrownProsecutionService

Sponsored