Two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after the death of former Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins in HMP Wakefield. The 48-year-old, who was serving a 29-year sentence for child sex offences including the attempted rape of a baby, was pronounced dead after a serious assault on Saturday morning.
West Yorkshire Police said officers were called to the prison at 9.39am following reports of a serious assault on a prisoner. A 48-year-old man was found with serious injuries and died at the scene. Two men, aged 25 and 43, have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in police custody.
Sources confirmed to the PA news agency that Watkins was attacked with a knife by another inmate. The Prison Service declined to comment while the police investigation continues. Watkins had previously been stabbed in the same prison in 2023, when he was reportedly taken hostage by three inmates before being freed by officers six hours later.
Watkins was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court in 2013 after admitting a string of offences, with the judge stating his crimes “plumbed new depths of depravity”. In 2019, he was caught with a mobile phone in prison and told a court he was locked up with “murderers, mass murderers, rapists, paedophiles, serial killers – the worst of the worst”.
