Ian Watkins, the disgraced former frontman of the rock band Lostprophets, has died after being attacked while serving his sentence at HMP Wakefield. The 48-year-old paedophile singer was serving a 29-year sentence for a string of serious child sex offenses.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed that they were called to the prison on Saturday morning following reports of a serious assault. Watkins was pronounced dead at the scene. Two men, aged 25 and 43, were subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder.
Watkins, originally from Pontypridd, was jailed in December 2013 after admitting to multiple offenses, including the attempted rape and sexual assault of a child and conspiring to rape a child. His two co-defendants, the mothers of the children he abused, received lengthy sentences as well. During sentencing, the judge described the case as plunging into "new depths of depravity" and noted Watkins’ "complete lack of remorse."
The attack comes shortly after a report by the chief inspector of prisons found that violence had "increased markedly" at HMP Wakefield. The report noted that older prisoners, particularly those convicted of sexual offenses, increasingly felt unsafe due to a growing presence of younger prisoners. Watkins had previously been attacked in prison in August 2023, though his injuries at that time were not life-threatening.
Before his arrest in 2012, Watkins commanded huge arena crowds and sold millions of albums globally with Lostprophets, a band that achieved both UK number one success and US chart recognition. The NSPCC previously commented that Watkins "used his status and global fame as a means to manipulate people and sexually abuse children," emphasizing that the case was ultimately about the child victims. The Prison Service is cooperating fully with the ongoing police investigation.
