Did police in the United Kingdom decide not to release CCTV footage of a suspect in the murder of Conservative Member of Parliament Ann Widdecombe to hide his race or ethnicity? No, that's not true: When Devon and Cornwall Police announced they would not release the footage, they had already publicly described the first suspect as "a white British national." The following day, they identified a second suspect as "a white British man." The decision not to release the CCTV footage does not appear to have been related to either suspect's race or ethnicity because police publicly disclosed those details for both men.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) by Tommy Robinson (@TRobinsonNewEra), an activist and co-founder of the English Defence League, on X on July 11, 2026. It opened:
Strange the police now don't want to 'prejudice future investigative opportunities' when they were so quick to go public about the ethnicity, skin colour and nationality of the original suspect they arrested for the murder of Ann Widdecombe - who was 'white British'.
Very strange indeed.
Let's see how this one pans out.
This is what an image in the post looked like:
(Image source: post by @TRobinsonNewEra on X.)
Robinson's statement is not accurate. He claimed that police identified the first suspect as "a white British national" and then stopped releasing information to protect someone who was not white. The available evidence does not support that claim. Here is a timeline of events:
In a statement (archived here) on the Devon and Cornwall Police website on July 10, 2026, authorities said:
The suspect, who is a white British national, remains in police custody while enquiries continue.
Police released the first suspect from custody, saying he was "no longer part of the investigation." In a statement (archived here) issued on July 11, 2026, Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said:
At this time we have made the active decision not to release further information, including descriptions of any potential suspects or releasing CCTV footage.
Releasing such information prematurely could compromise ongoing enquiries and may prejudice future investigative opportunities.
The decision not to disclose further details at this time is made on an operational basis. We will release information to the public when it is appropriate and necessary, in order to support the investigation.
I would ask the public again, please do not to speculate on social media.
Robinson's claim on social media followed the statement by Longman. Then, on July 12, 2026, police (archived here) announced the arrest of a second suspect, describing him as "a 28-year-old white British man." This suspect was initially arrested on July 11, 2026, and re-arrested on July 13, 2026, on suspicion of terrorism-related offenses.
