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Reason of Child Sex Offender Musician's Jail Death Revealed

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The shamed rock star from Pontypridd was sentenced to 29 years in prison plus six years on extended licence

Disgraced Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins passed away after being stabbed in the neck in an alleged prison incident, an inquest has heard.

Watkins, 48, succumbed on 11 October after being assaulted at HMP Wakefield, where he had been completing a 29-year prison sentence for child sex crimes including the sexual assault of a infant.

The hearing, opened earlier at Wakefield Coroner's Court, was postponed pending the conclusion of an related murder trial.

Two men have been charged with murder in connection to Watkins' death while two other men, aged 23 and 39, arrested earlier this week on suspicion of conspiracy to murder were sent back to prison as investigations continued.

Coroner Findings

Medical Examiner Oliver Longstaff said Watkins, who was referred to by his full name of Ian David Karslake Watkins during the brief proceeding, had been pronounced dead at the West Yorkshire prison by an attending doctor and was officially identified by a prison guard.

Mr Longstaff said emergency services were called to the jail "following a report he had been attacked in the throat".

The coroner said a autopsy report gave the reason of death as an wound to the throat.

'Extreme Wickedness'

In 2013 at Cardiff Crown Court, Watkins refuted rape but admitted the sexual assault and abuse of a child under 13.

He admitted 13 crimes, including plotting to rape a child, three counts of abuse involving children, seven involving creating, making or possessing indecent images of children and one of possessing an shocking image involving a sex act on an creature.

Prosecutors had described him as a man corrupted by fame, substances, and influence who had perpetrated crimes "beyond imagination."

Mr Justice Royce said the case had broken "unprecedented territory" and "plunged into new levels of depravity".

Watkins was also attacked in prison in 2023. Following that attack, he was taken to medical facility with wounds which were not fatal.

Rashid Gedel, 25, and Samuel Dodsworth, 43, were presented in court last week charged with his murder, but were not asked to enter pleas.

Who Was Ian Watkins?

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Watkins appearing in London in 2012

Watkins was formerly one of Wales' most famous musicians - the frontman of the rock band Lostprophets.

The band formed in Pontypridd in 1997, and distributed millions of albums around the world.

They released five studio albums, one of which achieved number one in the UK.

The group also had some success in the US, with their second and third albums reaching the top-40.

They separated immediately after Watkins was convicted in 2013.

His former bandmates spoke publicly about their surprise and disgust.

Bassist Stuart Richardson said in 2014: "Although I was completely finished with him, I wished it was all a mistake, he was not guilty, he had to be.

"The first time, we knew the band was done. You can't return from that."

The other members and American singer Geoff Rickly created a new band, No Devotion, shortly thereafter.

The writer

Stacey Simpson

AI voice technology researcher and developer with over a decade of experience in speech synthesis and natural language processing.

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