A transgender University of Aberdeen employee who sparked outrage by celebrating the death of former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe on social media has been charged by Police Scotland after officers reopened their investigation.
Heather Herbert, a web developer at the university and a transgender activist who has previously stood as a Labour and Scottish Green Party candidate, was initially told there was “no criminality” in a series of Bluesky posts made following news of Widdecombe’s death.
After a further assessment, however, Police Scotland reversed that decision, carried out additional enquiries and confirmed on July 16 that Herbert had been arrested and charged in connection with the online comments.
The force said a report would be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal, Scotland’s public prosecutor. It has not specified the exact offence.
Herbert posted “Some good news for once” in response to reports of Widdecombe’s death before adding, “I hope it was an extremely painful death.” In a second post, Herbert wrote, “I hope she was handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony.”
The comments were made before police confirmed they were treating Widdecombe’s death as a murder investigation. After learning she had been killed, Herbert declined to retract the remarks and continued to defend them publicly.
“I don’t want to see anyone murdered, but I’m still glad she is dead” she told local reporters. “I’m not a hypocrite. I posted that before the murder investigation was launched,” she stated.
The University of Aberdeen distanced itself from the posts, saying they reflected Herbert’s personal views and not those of the institution.
“The comments that have been shared are entirely the individual’s own and do not represent the views of the University of Aberdeen,” a university spokesperson said.
The university added that it was reviewing the matter “as a matter of priority” and was cooperating with the police investigation.
The arrest comes as Devon and Cornwall Police continue to investigate Widdecombe’s death as a suspected terrorist attack.
A 28-year-old man from Rotherham has been re-arrested under the Terrorism Act after detectives said new evidence suggested the attack had been politically motivated.
Officers searching the suspect’s home reportedly found communist literature, prompting counter-terrorism police to take over the investigation.
Under terror laws, police may be allowed to hold the 28-year-old for up to two weeks for questioning.
Counter-terrorism officers investigating the killing of former British minister and Reform UK spokeswoman Ann Widdecombe have reportedly discovered communist literature and other politically themed material at the home of the main suspect, as detectives continue to investigate…
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) July 14, 2026
