Joshua Kerry charged with preparing terrorist attack on Nigel Farage

The man accused of murdering former UK Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe has additionally been charged with preparing a terrorist attack on Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.

Joshua Kerry, 28, of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, was charged on Friday under the Terrorism Act 2006 and will appear in court on Wednesday, police said. The new charge relates to activities that allegedly took place between May 31 and July 8.

“We have been running a hugely intensive and complex investigation for some time. The charge announced today is a result of the tireless work of investigators across the Counter Terrorism Policing network,” said Vicki Evans, Senior National Coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing.

“My profound sympathies are with Nigel Farage and his family. Let no one make any mistake: an attack on anyone in politics is an attack on us all,” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood wrote on X. She added that the case “raises serious questions about the security of those in public life.”

Kerry was arrested shortly after Widdecombe’s body was found on July 9 at her rural home in southwest England. Prosecutors allege that the suspect struck the 78-year-old politician 21 times with a hammer in an attack that was caught on camera. No motive has yet been made public.

A Conservative MP for more than two decades, Widdecombe served as employment minister and later as prisons minister. From 2019 to 2020, she was a member of the European Parliament for the Brexit Party, which Farage co-founded.

She was known for her socially conservative views, opposing same-sex marriage and abortion. In 2019, a theater show featuring Widdecombe was canceled after critics accused her of endorsing conversion therapy, the controversial practice of attempting to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Widdecombe argued that her comments had been misconstrued.

Farage, one of the leading campaigners for Leave during the 2016 Brexit referendum, has long faced death threats and has repeatedly been targeted during public appearances.

He was doused with milkshakes while campaigning in 2019 and again in 2024, and has also had eggs and other objects thrown at him.

In April 2025, a suspected incendiary device was pushed through the letterbox of his home and burned itself out. Counter-terrorism police reopened the investigation this year after identifying a previously missed line of inquiry. No one has been charged over the incident.

Reform UK has said Farage’s publicly funded security was cut by 75% last year, forcing the party and private donors to fund additional protection. Parliamentary authorities have declined to confirm the figure, citing security concerns.