Ian Watkins, the notorious former lead singer of Lostprophets, has been killed in prison after a violent assault, prompting a full-scale murder investigation.
The 48-year-old, once a prominent figure in the rock scene who shared stages with Metallica and Slipknot, was serving a 29-year sentence for a series of horrific child sex offenses.
Police ignored early warnings
Watkins, who fronted the Welsh band Lostprophets from 1997 until 2012, was convicted in 2013 of 13 sexual crimes, including attempted rape of a baby, multiple assaults involving minors, and possession of extreme pornographic material.
Concerns about his behavior were reportedly raised with South Wales Police as early as 2008, including claims that he supplied drugs like cocaine to children. Despite numerous warnings, authorities failed to act until years later.
During sentencing, Justice Royce condemned Watkins’ actions as “plunging into new depths of depravity,” calling him a “corrupting influence” who showed “a complete lack of remorse.”
Brutally attacked behind bars
According to West Yorkshire Police, officers were called to HMP Wakefield on Saturday morning following reports of a serious incident.
“A man aged 48 was found with severe injuries and, despite medical intervention, was pronounced dead at the scene,” the statement said. Two inmates, aged 25 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of murder, and detectives from the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team are investigating.
Sources told the Daily Mail that Watkins was stabbed in the neck during the assault and died from massive blood loss. One insider described the scene as “brutal and shocking,” adding that guards “couldn’t save him despite rushing in immediately.”
Although he was airlifted to the hospital, Watkins did not survive. He is now one of the highest-profile prisoners ever killed in a British jail.
History of violence in prison
This was not the first time Watkins had been attacked behind bars.
In 2023, he was slashed with a sharpened toilet brush in a dispute over a drug debt, and a year earlier, he was held hostage for six hours and stabbed, leaving him hospitalized with critical injuries.
From rock fame to disgrace
Before his crimes were exposed, Watkins and Lostprophets achieved international fame, selling millions of albums throughout the 2000s. The band even opened for Metallica in 2004 and performed alongside Slipknot.
After Watkins’ arrest and conviction, the remaining members of Lostprophets cut all ties with him, later forming a new group, No Devotion, with American vocalist Geoff Rickly.
Watkins’ death marks a grim conclusion to one of the most shocking downfalls in modern music — a man who went from rock superstardom to one of Britain’s most reviled prisoners, ultimately meeting a violent end behind bars.