Ian Watkins, the former frontman of the British rock band Lostprophets, was killed on Saturday in a prison attack in England, where he was serving a 29-year sentence for multiple sex crimes against children.
Watkins, 48, pleaded guilty in November 2013 to 13 child sex offenses — including making or possessing child pornographic images, sexually assaulting at least one child under 13 and attempting to rape a baby.
He was sentenced the following month for what the judge called “new depths of depravity.” He was serving his lengthy term at a prison in Wakefield, England, nicknamed the “Monster Mansion” due to the high-profile criminals held there.
On Saturday, West Yorkshire Police said in a statement that officers were sent to the prison at around 9:40 a.m. following the report of an assault on an inmate. They arrived to find a 48-year-old male suffering “serious” but unspecified injuries. Despite attempting lifesaving measures, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Though police did not identify the victim in their statement, prison sources have since confirmed that Watkins was killed after being attacked by fellow inmates, the BBC reported. He was allegedly stabbed, according to local reports.
Following the attack, police said two men, ages 25 and 43, had been arrested on suspicion of murder. An investigation remains ongoing and no further details were released.
Watkins was previously attacked in prison in August 2023, but those injuries were not life-threatening.
Lostprophets, a Welsh alternative rock band formed in 1997, released five studio albums before disbanding in 2012 after allegations against Watkins became public. Two of their albums, 2004’s “Start Something” and 2006’s “Liberation Transmission,” reached the U.S. Top 40 charts.
The band’s 2003 song “Last Train Home” topped Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart and reached No. 75 on the Billboard Hot 100.
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