A University of Aberdeen employee who sparked outrage after celebrating the death of former Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe has now been arrested and charged by Police Scotland.
Human Events first reported on the story on Wednesday, when it emerged that Heather Herbert, a transgender biological male, and former Labour candidate for Aberdeen Donside, had posted vile messages on Bluesky celebrating Widdecombe's death, including writing: "Some good news for once. I hope it was an extremely painful death." In another post, Herbert added: "I hope she was handcuffed to the bed as she screamed in agony."
The controversy intensified after Herbert declined to apologize for the posts, telling a student newspaper: "I am glad she is dead", following the opening of a murder investigation. Confirming the latest development, a Police Scotland spokesperson said: "We received reports on Saturday 11 July 2026 relating to a post made online. Following further assessment, a 50-year-old has been arrested and charged in connection. A report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal."
Herbert is a web developer at the University of Aberdeen. The arrest comes after Police Scotland had initially determined there was no criminality before later confirming that "additional inquiries" were being carried out following further assessment. Aberdeen University also confirmed it is cooperating with the police investigation.
A university spokesperson said: "The comments that have been shared are entirely the individual's own and do not represent the views of the University of Aberdeen. We do not condone violence or hateful behaviour in any form. We are reviewing this as a matter of priority through our established processes and are cooperating with Police Scotland as they carry out their enquiries, so cannot comment further."
As trans activists leapt to Herbert's defense by pointing to past conservative comments by Widdecombe, author and champion of women's rights J.K. Rowling said, "The issuer of that vile statement is a man, as anyone with even 1% vision could tell you. Specifically, he's a man who said he hoped she died handcuffed to a bed and screaming in agony."
Police have not disclosed the specific offence in connection with the charge. The case will now be referred to Scotland's Procurator Fiscal, which will determine the next steps in the prosecution.
