Two prisoners have been charged with murdering disgraced Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins following a fatal assault inside one of Britain’s most notorious jails.
Rashid Gedel, aged 25, and Samuel Dodsworth, aged 43, appeared before magistrates this morning accused of killing the paedophile rock star.
Watkins, 48, had been serving nearly three decades behind bars for a catalogue of horrific child sex offences, including the attempted rape of a fan’s baby daughter.
He was pronounced dead on Saturday morning after emergency services were summoned to HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire, known as Monster Mansion due to its high-profile dangerous inmates.
Today, Gedel and Dodsworth appeared expressionless in the dock at Leeds Magistrates’ Court, where they each spoke only to confirm their names and ages.
Both men, dressed in bright yellow and green escape suits designed to make absconding prisoners immediately visible, were surrounded by five court security guards during their brief and separate hearings.
Neither defendant entered pleas to the murder charge and no application for bail was made on their behalf.
The pair were remanded in custody and will appear before Leeds Crown Court tomorrow for their next hearing.
Since Watkins’s killing, additional details have emerged about his time behind bars, including reports the singer paid other inmates for protection.
Watkins is said to have had his throat slashed after prisoners were released from their cells during the morning unlock period.
He is believed to have been housed on a general wing alongside some of Wakefield’s most dangerous inmates, rather than on a unit dedicated to sex offenders who typically require separation for their own safety.
A source has been quoted as saying it was as if Watkins knew his time was up, suggesting he may have been aware of growing threats against him.
HMP Wakefield authorities are said to be concerned about potential copycat attacks taking place and have conducted extensive weapons searches throughout the facility.
A prison van was observed leaving the category A establishment on Saturday night, presumably transporting evidence or transferring prisoners involved in the incident.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed today that Watkins had died after being seriously assaulted inside the prison.
The force stated in a release that detectives have charged two men with murder after the death of a prisoner at HMP Wakefield on Saturday.
Ian Watkins, 48, was pronounced dead after being seriously assaulted at HMP Wakefield on Saturday morning, the statement read.
Rashid Gedel, 25, and Samuel Dodsworth, 43, both of HMP Wakefield have both been charged with murder.
They are due to appear at Leeds Magistrates Court this morning, police added.
The development comes as one of Watkins’s former girlfriends told the Daily Mail of her surprise it took so long for the depraved frontman to be killed behind bars.
Joanne Mjadzelics, who helped expose the sick paedophile to authorities, now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and self-harm after being exposed to Watkins’s vile behaviour during their relationship.
Watkins was serving 35 years for 13 horrific sex offences against children when he was killed, crimes that shocked the music world and destroyed the legacy of Lostprophets.
The Welsh rock band had sold more than 3.4 million albums worldwide before Watkins’s arrest and conviction in 2013 revealed his double life as a determined and committed paedophile.
He preyed on fans, including two mothers who offered up their babies to be abused by their idol, behaviour prosecutors described as representing shocking depravity.
Watkins changed his plea to guilty at the beginning of his trial, admitting to trying to rape a fan’s baby and plotting to rape another infant.
He filmed himself committing sex acts on a baby boy the day after Lostprophets’ final album Weapons was released, creating evidence that would ultimately seal his fate.
The fiend claimed at Cardiff Crown Court he could not remember the sickening attacks because he was a heavy user of crystal meth at the time, though judges rejected this as mitigation.
His two co-defendants, fans who were the mothers of victims, received sentences of 14 and 17 years in prison for their roles in facilitating the abuse.
In 2014, Watkins was refused the right to appeal against his 35-year sentence, with Lord Justice Christopher Pitchford saying his offences were of such shocking depravity that the lengthy term was warranted.
Watkins had been attacked multiple times during his imprisonment at Wakefield, including a serious stabbing in August 2023 that left him with neck injuries requiring hospital treatment.
That assault, carried out by three fellow prisoners, sparked a siege that only ended when a specialist Tornado team of riot officers deployed stun grenades to extract Watkins from the cell.
The August 2023 stabbing was reportedly sparked by a row over guitar lessons combined with anger about jail visits Watkins received from a younger girlfriend.
Violence at Wakefield had increased by 62 per cent since 2022 according to an inspection report published last month, with many inmates scared to leave their cells.
The facility holds 630 prisoners including some of Britain’s most notorious criminals, earning its Monster Mansion nickname.
Current and past inmates include Sarah Payne’s killer Roy Whiting, murderer Jeremy Bamber, Al-Qaeda terrorist Kamel Bourgass, serial rapist Reynhard Sinaga, and child killer Mick Philpott.
Watkins’s housing on a general wing rather than a vulnerable prisoners’ unit meant he was in daily contact with dangerous criminals who might view attacking a high-profile paedophile as earning status among fellow inmates.
Prison sources suggested Watkins walked around with a target on his back given his notoriety and the nauseating nature of his crimes against babies and young children.
The charging of two inmates with his murder suggests authorities believe the killing may have been a coordinated attack rather than the work of a lone assailant.
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