Britain unites in grief for murdered MP Jo Cox

Britain united in grief for murdered MP Jo Cox this morning as it emerged the popular politician had been subjected to a barrage of hate mail in the three months prior to her brutal killing.

The mother-of-two was punched and kicked to the ground by her attacker before being shot three times – once in the head - with an 'antique gun'  outside a West Yorkshire library yesterday afternoon.

 

The married 41-year-old, who was a rising Labour star and dedicated MP, died from the catastrophic injuries she sustained in the attack, after the killer ambushed her as she walked to her constituency surgery in Birstall near Leeds at about 1pm.

Two hours after her death, her husband Brendan – with whom she has two young children, aged three and five - tweeted a photograph of her and urged people to 'fight against the hatred that killed her.'

In a moving statement, he said: '[This] is the beginning of a new chapter in our lives. More difficult, more painful, less joyful, less full of love. I and Jo's friends and family are going to work every moment of our lives to love and nurture our kids and to fight against the hate that killed Jo.'

Mrs Cox's friend and fellow Labour MP Rachel Reeves broke down in tears as she and others visited the centre of Birstall this morning, where hundreds of flowers and cards have been laid by grieving locals.

It came as it emerged that police had been poised to step up security for Mrs Cox, who became an MP last year, as she had been harassed in a stream of abusive messages over the last three months. 

Locals have named and identified 'loner' Tommy Mair as the 52-year-old man who has been arrested by police in connection with the attack 

The newspaper suggested there was no known link between the messages she had received and yesterday's attack, but reported that her security had not been upgraded before she was targeted.

Detectives were last night questioning 52-year-old 'loner' Thomas Mair, amid fears he was motivated by Mrs Cox's political campaigning. It was claimed her attacker shouted 'Britain First' as he targeted the MP in broad daylight.

Dramatic pictures show a man being arrested just minutes after the attack in a nearby street.

There is unconfirmed evidence Mair supported far-Right causes and claims he had mental health problems and had been released recently from psychiatric care.

The MP was an outspoken supporter of the Remain campaign and had called for more refugees to be given a safe haven on our shores. Last night her husband, charity worker Brendan Cox, 37, said he would dedicate 'every moment' of the rest of his life to his wife's memory.

'Jo believed in a better world and she fought for it every day of her life with an energy, and a zest for life that would exhaust most people,' he said.

'She would have wanted two things above all else to happen now, one that our precious children are bathed in love and two, that we all unite to fight against the hatred that killed her. Hate doesn't have a creed, race or religion, it is poisonous.

'Jo would have no regrets about her life, she lived every day of it to the full.'

The murder took place outside Birstall Library in a busy shopping street just before 1pm. Mrs Cox was walking to a constituency surgery – advertised on posters inside the building – after attending a school assembly about three miles away.

Witnesses said a man in a baseball cap grabbed her, pulling her hair as he punched and kicked her to the ground. As bystanders attempted to intervene, he pulled out a large hunting knife and repeatedly stabbed the MP, also catching a 77-year-old man in the stomach as he tried to intervene.

He then pulled out what appeared to be an antique gun which he fired three times from just a few feet away, aiming the final shot at her head. Some witnesses claimed he looked 'full of range' as he shot her at close-range.

One man said the killer deliberately moved in to finish off the MP, firing a final shot to 'the head area' in a horrific attack that lasted up to 15 minutes. 

Source: Dailymail