Murder of convicted paedophile and Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins: two inmates charged
Two men have been charged with the murder of Lostprophets convicted paedophile Ian Watkins, West Yorkshire Police have confirmed.
Watkins, who pleaded guilty to his crimes, died from blood loss after an inmate reportedly slashed his throat.
Police and medics rushed to the scene, but the 48-year-old could not be saved.
The disgraced singer was serving a 35-year sentence in Wakefield Prison after being convicted of 13 child sex offences in 2013, including three counts of sexual assault involving children and conspiring to rape an 11-month-old baby.
In a statement, police said: ‘Detectives have charged two men with murder after the death of a prisoner at HMP Wakefield on Saturday.
‘Ian Watkins, aged 48, was pronounced dead after being seriously assaulted at HMP Wakefield on Saturday morning (11 October).
‘Rashid Gedel, aged 25, who self-identifies as from any other black background, and Samuel Dodsworth, aged 43, who self-identifies as white British, both of HMP Wakefield, have both been charged with murder.
‘They are due to appear at Leeds Magistrates Court this morning.’
A source previously told The Sun that Watkins was killed in ‘the most brutal way possible, even by prison standards’.
They continued: ‘He was targeted by another inmate who shanked him in the neck.
‘Guards were nearby and raced to the scene pretty quickly – but there was nothing they could do, and they could not save him.’
Watkins was ‘airlifted to hospital’ as the prison, also known by its nickname ‘Monster Mansion’, was ‘locked down’.
The former Lostprophets singer, who formed the band in 1997 alongside Lee Gaze, was left ‘fighting for his life’ after a knife attack in 2023, a decade into his sentence.
Police were not aware of the depths of Watkins’ depravity when they raided his Pontypridd home in September 2012 for drugs, but after his computer, mobile phones, and storage devices were seized, his crimes were unearthed and he was charged.
During his 15 years as the lead singer of Lostprophets, Watkins used his status to prey on fans, with two mothers offering up their babies to be abused. His two co-defendants received sentences of 14 and 17 years.
In court, the ex-musician was described as ‘a determined and committed pedophile’, and Lord Justice Christopher Pitchford said his acts were ‘shocking’.
In 2014, Watkins was refused the right to appeal against his 35-year sentence. Lawyers for Watkins claimed he should have his jail term cut because his last-minute guilty plea spared a jury from having to watch his homemade child pornography.
Among the disturbing videos due to be shown at his trial included his attempted rape of a baby and a webcam chat in which he instructed a crazed fan to abuse her child.
Lord Justice Pitchford said on the refusal: ‘These were offenses against infant children of such shocking depravity that a very lengthy sentence of imprisonment was demanded.
‘It is not demonstrated the total sentence of 29 years together with the extended license period was arguably manifestly excessive. Accordingly, the application in his case is refused.’
Watkins’ Lostprophets co-founder Lee Gaze recently spoke out in the wake of his death, responding to fans on social media.
After Watkins’ guilty plea in December 2013, Gaze, talking of the band’s horror-stricken reaction, said: ‘There were two sets of it [shock] because there were the accusations – which was one thing.
‘And then there was the actual, “Yeah, I did do it” which was a year later. He dragged that out for a year, so we got hit by it twice.’
He added: ‘How could you know? How would you know?
‘Who would disclose such a thing to five people, who between them have eight children? You just wouldn’t because they would be killed on the spot.’
Head of Investigations
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