British police have made a fresh arrest in the murder investigation into former Conservative minister and Reform UK campaigner Ann Widdecombe, hours after releasing the first man detained over her killing.

A 28-year-old man was arrested at an address in South Yorkshire on Saturday evening on suspicion of murdering the 78-year-old former MP, Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed.

The man, described by police as a white British national, was taken into custody as detectives continued a rapidly developing investigation into Widdecombe’s violent death at her home on the edge of Dartmoor.

Her family has been informed of the latest arrest.

The breakthrough came after police released a different suspect, a 26-year-old man who had been arrested in Newton Abbot, Devon, on Friday.

Police subsequently said the younger man had been released from custody and was no longer part of the investigation.

The dramatic change in the inquiry underlines the pace of the murder investigation as detectives attempt to reconstruct Widdecombe’s final hours and identify precisely what happened inside or around her isolated Devon home.

Widdecombe was found dead at her property in Haytor Vale, near Dartmoor National Park, at about 11.40am on Thursday, July 9.

She had suffered what police described as “serious injuries”.

Detectives now believe she may have been attacked at about 12.30pm on Wednesday — almost 24 hours before her body was discovered.

That emerging timeline has become a crucial part of the investigation.

Officers are examining movements in the Haytor area, carrying out house-to-house enquiries and reviewing CCTV as they attempt to establish who may have been near Widdecombe’s home during the period in which police believe she was attacked.

A forensic cordon has remained around the property while specialist officers conduct detailed examinations.

Police have also maintained a significant presence in the local area, where the death of one of Britain’s most recognisable former politicians has shocked residents.

Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said the investigation remained at an early stage but was moving at considerable speed.

“Our priority remains identifying those responsible and ensuring that all available evidence is thoroughly examined,” he said.

Detectives, he added, were carrying out numerous enquiries and remained committed to establishing the full circumstances surrounding Widdecombe’s death.

“Our murder enquiry is in its early stages but moving at a significant pace. We are deploying all of the necessary resources to find out exactly what has happened.”

Longman appealed directly to anyone who may have information to contact police, stressing that even details that appear insignificant could prove important.

The force has repeatedly urged the public not to speculate while investigators work through evidence.

Despite Widdecombe’s decades at the centre of contentious British political debates, police have said there is currently no information suggesting her killing was politically motivated.

Authorities also do not believe the death was an act of terrorism.

Counter-terrorism officers have provided support to the investigation, but police have emphasised that this does not mean detectives have identified a terrorist motive.

The distinction is particularly significant because of Widdecombe’s political profile and the immediate national concern surrounding the killing of a former parliamentarian.

Widdecombe spent 23 years in the House of Commons after first being elected as a Conservative MP in 1987.

She represented Maidstone and later Maidstone and The Weald until leaving Parliament in 2010 and served in ministerial positions under John Major’s Conservative government.

Her government career included roles in employment and prisons, and she later became shadow home secretary during her years in opposition.

Known for her uncompromising socially conservative positions, Widdecombe was one of the most recognisable figures on the British political right.

She opposed abortion and was a prominent critic of the expansion of LGBTQ rights, positions that repeatedly placed her at the centre of fierce political and cultural arguments.

Her outspoken style earned both loyal supporters and determined critics.

Yet Widdecombe’s public profile extended far beyond Westminster.

After leaving the House of Commons, she became a familiar television personality, appearing on Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother.

Her performances on reality television introduced her to audiences who may have known little about her ministerial career.

Widdecombe’s blunt manner and willingness to become the subject of jokes made her an unusual crossover figure between politics and entertainment.

She later returned to frontline politics during the Brexit battles that transformed British public life.

In 2019, she left the Conservative Party and joined Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party, winning election to the European Parliament for South West England.

She served as an MEP until Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union brought the UK’s representation in the parliament to an end in January 2020.

Widdecombe subsequently remained active with Reform UK and continued to campaign publicly on immigration, Brexit and other issues associated with Britain’s populist right.

Her death has therefore generated tributes from political figures across Britain’s ideological divide.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the news as shocking and said his thoughts were with Widdecombe’s family and friends.

He described her as a distinguished politician who had achieved much during a long career in public life.

Starmer also used the moment to emphasise the importance of the safety of people involved in politics, urging the public to rise above political disagreements.

That issue carries particular weight in Britain following the murders of two serving MPs within the past decade.

Labour MP Jo Cox was shot and stabbed in 2016 by a far-right extremist.

Conservative MP Sir David Amess was fatally stabbed in 2021 by an attacker inspired by Islamic State ideology.

Both killings profoundly changed discussions about the personal security of British politicians and the risks faced by MPs while meeting members of the public.

However, police investigating Widdecombe’s death have so far resisted any attempt to draw a direct connection between her killing and her political career.

The current investigation is focused on evidence rather than assumptions about motive.

Nigel Farage said he was deeply upset by Widdecombe’s death and warned that life had become increasingly dangerous for public figures.

Widdecombe had remained an active Reform UK voice and was known for forcefully defending the party’s positions, including its hardline approach to immigration.

Former prime minister Boris Johnson also paid tribute, describing her as a “heroic Brexiteer” and a formidable public speaker.

Johnson recalled her ability to electrify Conservative audiences and said she had been an exceptionally difficult act for other speakers to follow.

The management company that represented Widdecombe following her parliamentary career said her life had been shaped by strong Christian values and a commitment to public service.

Cloud9 Management said she continued to enjoy the “cut and thrust of political debate” long after leaving Parliament and was still campaigning and commenting on major political issues.

Her Catholic faith was a defining element of her public and private identity.

It informed many of the socially conservative views that made her such a controversial political figure, but friends and representatives also described it as central to her personal philosophy.

Cloud9 recalled Widdecombe once saying that people get only “one go this side of eternity” and should take the opportunities they value.

That willingness to embrace unexpected opportunities was evident in the unusual trajectory of her career.

Few former government ministers move from debates over prisons and home affairs to dancing on prime-time television. Fewer still return to elected politics years later as part of a movement dedicated to Britain’s departure from the European Union.

Widdecombe did all three.

Her death has inevitably attracted intense public attention, but the police investigation is now centred on a much narrower set of questions.

Detectives believe she was attacked nearly a day before officers found her body.

They are attempting to identify people who were in the Haytor area, understand movements around her home and determine the sequence of events that led to her death.

The release of the first suspect represented a significant development.

Police made clear that the 26-year-old man arrested in Newton Abbot was not merely released pending further investigation. They said he was no longer part of the murder inquiry.

That announcement was followed within hours by confirmation of the arrest of the 28-year-old man in South Yorkshire.

No charge has been announced against the new suspect.

An arrest on suspicion of murder does not establish guilt, and the man is entitled to the presumption of innocence.

Police have not publicly disclosed what evidence led detectives from Devon to the South Yorkshire address or whether the arrested man was known to Widdecombe.

They have also not announced a suspected motive.

Those unanswered questions are likely to remain central as the inquiry develops.

For residents around Haytor, the scale of the police operation has been a visible reminder of the seriousness of the investigation.

Specialist forensic teams have continued work at Widdecombe’s home while uniformed officers and detectives carry out enquiries in the surrounding community.

The rural Dartmoor setting has added complexity to the effort to reconstruct events.

Unlike a densely populated urban street covered by numerous private and public cameras, investigators may have to build parts of the timeline from witness accounts, vehicle movements and limited footage from the wider area.

Police are therefore urging anyone with information to come forward rather than deciding for themselves whether a sighting or detail is relevant.

As the murder investigation enters its next phase, Britain is simultaneously mourning a political figure whose career spanned Westminster, reality television and the Brexit revolution.

Widdecombe was divisive by her own design. She rarely softened her views to avoid criticism and appeared to relish political argument.

But political leaders from across the spectrum have been united in condemning the circumstances of her death and expressing sympathy for those closest to her.

The immediate focus is now on the work of detectives.

The first man arrested has been eliminated from the investigation. A second suspect is in custody. Forensic work is continuing at Widdecombe’s home, and police are trying to account for the crucial period between the suspected attack on Wednesday afternoon and the discovery of her body on Thursday.

For now, investigators say there is no evidence of terrorism and no information establishing a political motive.

What happened to Ann Widdecombe in her Dartmoor home remains the central question of a murder inquiry that police say is moving at a significant pace.