Counter-terror probe focuses on final timeline before Ann Widdecombe’s death

The suspected “targeted murder” of Ann Widdecombe at her isolated country bungalow has shocked the nation.

Cops continue to investigate the death of the ex-Tory minister, 78 – who was interviewed just minutes before her suspected killing.

Murder squad detectives have since built a timeline that leads up to Ann being found dead inside her Devon home at 11.40am on Thursday.

Here is the minute-by-minute breakdown of the final days before her death last Wednesday – and the subsequent fast-moving murder probe.

Ms Widdecombe’s home was shown on national television just five days before she was allegedly killed.

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TV channel Quest aired an episode of Celebrity Yorkshire Auction House featuring the late 78-year-old politician on July 2, TV listings show.

In the episode, the inside of Ann’s £600,000 Dartmoor bungalow is shown in extensive detail as she gives host Angus Ashworth a guided tour.

However, there is no suggestion that visuals of the home on TV inspired or led to Ann’s killing.

Days later, on Wednesday, July 8, Ms Widdecombe made an appearance on Talk TV.

The rest of her day was filled with other media engagements, including a Channel 5 interview that she failed to attend.

What we know so far…

• Suspect ‘scoffed pizza at home just five hours after murder’ as terror cops dismiss ‘burglary gone wrong’

• Counter-terror cops take lead on “murder” probe after “new evidence found”

• Footage shows the moment the topless suspect was arrested by armed officers at his home nearly 300 miles from the crime scene

• A 28-year-old man is arrested in South Yorkshire on suspicion of murder

• Ms Widdecombe’s alleged killer caught on CCTV at her remote home

• The host of Ms Widdecombe’s final TV interview breaks his silence

• Ann Widdecombe, 78, is found dead at her Devon home

As she prepared for her interviews, a man in Rotherham was spotted on CCTV leaving his home in a red car just before 8am.

He was seen just hours before Ms Widdecombe is thought to have died.

And just minutes before Ann was allegedly murdered, she spoke on a Christian radio station – between 11.54am and 12.10pm.

In what would be her final interview, she defended Nigel Farage over a £5million gift which he says was for security.

The transcript was released yesterday with the permission of her family.

Following the interview, she was due to appear on Channel 5’s Matt Allwright show at 1pm – but failed to respond to show producers.

Ms Widdecombe’s final message was to a producer on the show as she prepared to join the interview via a virtual link, at 12:19pm.

She then failed to respond to a Zoom link sent at 12.48pm before a producer messaged at 12.55pm asking: “Hi Ann is everything ok?”

During the show on Wednesday, Mr Allwright confirmed Ms Widdecombe had been due to appear but had stopped responding to messages.

Fears were raised for Ms Widdecombe, who was a regular on both the Jeremy Vine and Matt Allwright panel shows.

She would typically respond to interview requests quickly – and concerned studio staff made multiple further attempts to contact Ms Widdecombe.

They tried to reach her over the following hours, including that night and the next morning – but to no avail.

Channel 5 said it passed all of the relevant information to police after news of Ms Widdecombe’s death broke the following day.

Host Dan Walker later confirmed her agent was contacted and asked to go check on her – but no one heard from Ms Widdecombe on Wednesday.

Ann joined a Christian radio station between 11.54am and 12.10pm, minutes before her death

Dozens of tributes have poured in for Ms Widdecombe

The following day, her bloodied body is understood to have been found by her domestic assistant at her isolated house in Haytor, Dartmoor.

This leaves a 24 hour gap in which the 78-year-old, who lived alone, could not be contacted.

Devon and Cornwall Police were contacted and news of Ms Widdecombe’s death broke on Friday morning.

It wasn’t until later that day that cops announced a murder investigation had been launched.

Officers went on to arrest a 26-year-old in nearby Newton Abbot, but he was quickly released the following day.

Counter-terror cops then took over the investigation which was yesterday declared a “targeted attack.”

On Saturday, a man, 28, believed to be the prime suspect – was arrested at his home in Rotherham, nearly 300 miles away from Ann’s house.

Counter-terror cops assisted with the arrest but the investigation remained in the hands of Devon and Cornwall Police.

The prime suspect gets into a red hatchback on his driveway five hours before she was fatally beaten at her home

The interview ended moments before Ann Widdecombe sent her final message to Channel 5 producers

Video footage of the arrest showed armed officers storming the Rotherham home.

That suspect was the same man allegedly caught on CCTV getting into a red hatchback just before 8am on Wednesday (July 8).

It is alleged that Ms Widdecombe’s killer was also caught on CCTV at her home.

On Monday, counter-terror cops declared they would be taking over the investigation after “new information and evidence” came to light.

It is understood that Russian and communist material were discovered onthe alleged killer’sdevices.

Cops are now focused on establishing the suspect’s political views over fears they may have been a murder motive, according to reports.

It followed the examination of electronic devices belonging to the suspect after he was taken into custody.

Yesterday, a warrant for further detention for the suspect was obtained, meaning he can be held for a further seven days under the terrorism act.

Counter-terror Assistant Commissioner, Laurence Taylor, confirmed that the alleged murder was “targeted” in a statement to the press.

Taylor then admitted that detectives were still working on figuring out the “extent of the planning and preparation” behind the alleged killing.

He went on to add that the murder investigation would run parallel to the terror investigation.

Cops are now probing whether the suspect may have left-wing extremist motivations or planned to target other politicians.