‘Transgender’ man arrested for celebrating murder of Catholic politician: ‘Hope it was a painful death’

ABERDEEN, Scotland (LifeSiteNews) — A transgender-identifying University of Aberdeen employee who publicly celebrated the murder of former British MP Ann Widdecombe has now been charged 

As covered last week by LifeSiteNews, the 78-year-old Widdecombe was found dead in her Devon, England, home on July 9. A suspect is in custody and being questioned, though police have released few details.

A Catholic convert and pro-life politician who served from 1987 to 2010, Widdecombe endeared herself to Britons with her surprisingly popular appearances on television shows Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother. 

As LifeSite covered Monday, in since-deleted BlueSky posts, Aberdeen web developer “Heather” Herbert, a male who identifies as female, wrote, “Some good news for once. I hope it was an extremely painful death” and “I hope she was handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony.”

Herbert was unapologetic in subsequent remarks to student newspaper The Gaudie, declaring, “I don’t want to see anyone murdered, but I’m still glad she is dead. I’m not a hypocrite. I posted that before the murder investigation was launched. I’m a nobody. I have no power to do anything. Ann Widdecombe was able to and made the lives of ordinary people hell.”

University officials distanced themselves from the comments, and now GB News reports that police have arrested Herbert in connection to them, reversing their original judgment that the comments were non-criminal. 

“We received reports on Saturday 11 July 2026 relating to a post made online,” a Police Scotland spokesperson said. “Following further assessment, a 50-year-old has been arrested and charged in connection. A report will be submitted to the procurator fiscal.”

“We stand firmly against any glorification or celebration of violence against women – regardless of their political views,” responded the group Women o’ Scotland. “We welcome Police Scotland’s decision to take this seriously and hope it sends a clear message that such comments will not be tolerated.”

While Herbert’s comments have been widely condemned, many have also questioned the free-speech implications of criminally charging him for offensive expression. “Undeniably hateful but Ann was a warrior for free speech. She’d survived a lot of insults which she took as part and parcel of living in society,” opined columnist Allison Pearson. “My guess is Ann would have harrumphed, ‘Appalling’ and not wanted any further action.”

Yet it has also been noted that Herbert’s comments about Widdecombe being “handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony” imply her death was not due to natural causes, despite coming before the police announced they were treating it as a murder, raising speculation that the arrest might be due less to Herbert’s free speech and more to what, if any, inside knowledge he might have about the crime.

LifeSiteNews previously noted that Widdecombe’s is the second murder of a high-profile Catholic politician in England this decade. Sir David Amess, Member of Parliament for 38 years and Widdecombe’s friend, was murdered at a local constituency event in 2021 by Islamist Ali Harbi Ali.