Lostprophets singer and convicted pedophile Ian Watkins has reportedly died after he was attacked in prison, in keeping with Rolling Stone. He was 48.
Watkins was serving a 29-year sentence on the HMP Wakefield high-security prison — often called “Monster Mansion” for housing a few of Britain’s most dangerous criminals — after he was convicted of a string of sex crimes, including crimes against young children and babies. He was attacked on Saturday, October 11, sustaining fatal injuries on the scene.
West Yorkshire Police said two men have been arrested on suspicion of the murder of the disgraced rock star. Additional details regarding the attack have yet to be officially revealed, but The Sun reported that one other convict jumped the singer and slashed his throat.
“Watkins has been killed in essentially the most brutal way possible – and the attack was shocking, even by prison standards,” the source told the outlet. “Guards were nearby and raced to the scene pretty quickly — but there was nothing they may do, they usually couldn’t save him.”
In keeping with the BBC, a spokesperson for the prison said it’s aware of the incident but cannot comment while the investigation is ongoing.
That is the second attack on Watkins on the prison since he was jailed in December 2013. In August 2023, three prisoners attacked him and left him with injuries which, while not life threatening, required hospital treatment. Reports say he was taken hostage and beaten for six hours by his fellow inmates.
Ian Watkins Ian Gavan/Getty Images
After his 2013 arrest, Watkins admitted to several sex offenses, including attempted rape and sexual assault of a baby under 13, but pleaded not guilty to rape.
He was also guilty of conspiring to rape a baby, three counts of sexual assault involving children, seven involving taking, making or possessing indecent images of youngsters and considered one of possessing an extreme pornographic image involving a sex act on an animal.
In 2014, judges rejected an appeal by Watkins to scale back his sentence and, in 2019, Watkins was given an additional 10 months in jail after authorities found a phone in his possession. At the moment, Watkins argued that other prisoners forced him to carry onto the phone, but refused to disclose which prisoners gave him the phone out of what he claimed on the time was a fear of retribution.
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Watkins’ ex-girlfriend, Joanne Mjadzelics, who helped expose the singer of his crimes, told the Every day Mail she was surprised “it didn’t occur sooner,” referring to her ex’s violent death.
“I used to be all the time waiting for this phone call,” Mjadzelics told the outlet. “He was walking around with a goal on his back from the primary day he entered the prison. I expected it to have happened earlier.”
She continued, “I actually have all the time been afraid of him getting out and tracking me down or something, so this can be a relief.”
Before his arrest, Watkins was an enormous celebrity because the lead singer of the Welsh band Lostprophets. He formed the band in 1997, rising to the highest of the charts in 2000 with the album “The Fake Sounds of Progress.” The group sold tens of millions of albums worldwide, but disbanded in 2013 after his conviction.