Watkins, the former singer of Lostprophets, was serving a 35 year sentence
17:52, 11 Oct 2025Updated 18:00, 11 Oct 2025
Ian Watkins(Image: PA)
The disgraced former rock star Ian Watkins has reportedly been killed in prison. Watkins was the frontman of Welsh rock band Lostprophets. But he was jailed for 35 years after being exposed as a paedophile who had attacked young children.
It has been reported that Watkins was murdered in HMP Wakefield this morning during a knife attack by another inmate. The Mirror reports that he is said to have had his throat slashed after inmates at Wakefield Prison were unlocked from their cells.
A statement from West Yorkshire Police said: “At 9.39am this morning (Saturday), police were called by staff at HMP Wakefield reporting an assault on a prisoner. Emergency services attended and the man was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.
Never miss a story with the MEN’s daily Catch Up newsletter – get it in your inbox by signing up here
“Detectives from the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team are investigating and inquiries remain ongoing at the scene.”
A Prison Service spokesperson said: “We are aware of an incident at HMP Wakefield which took place this morning. We are unable to comment further while the police investigate.”
It was not the first time Watkins had been attacked while serving his huge sentence. Watkins suffered severe but non-life threatening injuries after being taken hostage in 2023.
In 2013, Watkins, 48, pleaded guilty at Cardiff Crown Court to 13 child sex offences. He also admitted to the rape and sexual assault of a child who was under the age of 13.
Watkins was serving his sentence at HMP Wakefield, often nicknamed ‘Monster Mansion'(Image: Yorkshire Live WS)
Watkins also admitted conspiring to rape a child, three counts of sexual assault involving children, seven involving taking, making or possessing indecent images of children and one of possessing an extreme pornographic image involving a sex act on an animal.
The judge said Watkins had achieved ‘fame and success’. “You had many fawning fans,” Mr Justice Royce said. “That gave you power. You knew you could use that power to induce young female fans to help satisfy your apparently insatiable lust and to take part in the sexual abuse of their young children. Away from the highlights of your public performances lay a dark and sinister side.”
The musician was later handed an extra 10 months after he was discovered to have a mobile phone in his possession while behind bars. Initially, he denied having a three-inch GSTAR phone in his cell. As the verdict was read out, Watkins claimed that “known murderers” in his prison told him to keep an eye on the phone after chucking it on his bed.
During the hearing, Judge Rodney Jameson QC said: “I am very conscious of the fact you are serving a very long time and you will be well into middle age by the time you are released.
Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE
“The fact of the matter is if there is not an appreciable penalty for having had a mobile phone in these circumstances then of course you would draw from that the lesson you could have another one and that is not a position I would want to encourage.”
Speaking about possible repercussions, he said: “Chances are someone would sneak up behind me and cut my throat. It’s not like one-on-one. Stuff like that, you don’t see it coming.”
He is said to be sharing his wing with murderers, killers, rapists and paedophiles, who he described as “the worst of the worst”. Asked to describe his music career during an earlier appearance, Watkins told the court his band had sold between five and ten million records across the world between 1999 and 2012.
Watkins said the Lostprophets had toured all over the world, headlining arenas.