One of two inmates charged with murdering former Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins at HMP Wakefield has refused to appear in court via video link. Rashid Gedel, 25, also known as Rico Gedel, declined to attend his first Crown Court hearing remotely, with prosecutors stating he wanted to appear in person.
Gedel and Samuel Dodsworth, 43, are accused of killing Watkins, 48, who was serving a 29-year sentence for child sex offences. Emergency services were called to the prison on Saturday morning, but Watkins was pronounced dead at the scene after suffering blood loss from a slash to the throat.
At Leeds Crown Court on Tuesday, Dodsworth appeared via video link from HMP Wakefield, but Gedel refused to participate. Prosecutor Tom Storey KC said: 'The reason for Rico Gedel's non-appearance this morning is said to be a refusal on his part to attend on the link. It appears he wanted to attend in person.' No bail applications were made, and both men were remanded in custody until a plea and trial preparation hearing on November 12. Judge Guy Kearl set a provisional trial date of May 5, expected to last two to three weeks.
Watkins was convicted in 2013 of 13 child sex offences, including sexual assault of children and conspiring to rape a fan's 11-month-old baby. He was sentenced to 35 years, later reduced on appeal. A source told The Sun that Watkins was killed in 'the most brutal way possible, even for prison standards', adding that he was 'shanked in the neck' by another inmate. Guards were nearby but could not save him.
Watkins had previously survived a knife attack in 2023 while incarcerated at HMP Wakefield, known as 'Monster Mansion'. His crimes were uncovered after a police raid on his home in 2012, revealing a cache of child pornography. At sentencing, Lord Justice Christopher Pitchford described him as 'a determined and committed paedophile', and his appeal against sentence was refused in 2014.
