British counter-terrorism police officers are now leading the investigation into the suspected murder of former British government minister Ann Widdecombe, interior minister Shabana Mahmood said on Monday.

Widdecombe, 78, was found dead at her home in rural southwest England on Thursday with what police described as “serious injuries”. Officers arrested a white British man in Rotherham, northern England, late on Saturday.

“Following new information and evidence, they (counter-terrorism police) are now leading on the investigation into the horrific murder of Ann Widdecombe,” Mahmood said on social media platform X.

“The police are pursuing multiple lines of enquiry to establish the motivation for this attack,” she said, adding that she would update lawmakers in parliament later in the day.

The suspect has now been rearrested on suspicion of commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism, the BBC reported, citing counter-terrorism police.

News on Friday of her death led to tributes from across the political spectrum in Britain, including from Prime Minister Keir Starmer and from Farage, who described her as “an extraordinary woman”.

Widdecombe was known for her socially conservative views, first as a junior minister in Conservative Prime Minister John Major’s 1992-1997 government and latterly as an immigration and justice spokesperson for Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK.

She converted to Catholicism partly in protest at the Church of England’s ordination of women as priests and was opposed to abortion and to equalising the age of consent for homosexual and heterosexual relationships.