All the missed opportunities to catch paedophile Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins
Convicted pedophile and former Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins has been murdered in a Category A prison, 12 years after he was first incarcerated.
The disgraced rock singer was sentenced to 29 years in prison and an additional six years for various child sex crimes, including the attempted rape of a fan’s baby.
His conviction shocked the public and the music industry. However, it later emerged that the 48-year-old had been reported to the police and local authorities on numerous occasions but was allowed to roam free due to failures in the investigation.
He was fatally stabbed at Category A HMP Wakefield on Saturday and two men were arrested on suspicion of murder, making him one of the best-known prisoners killed behind bars.
Speaking after learning of his death, his ex-girlfriend said she was “relieved” to hear the news a decade after helping put him behind bars.
What were the missed opportunities to stop Watkins?
Before his arrest, Wakins was best known as the lead singer of the alternative rock band Lostprophets, which made its debut in 1997 and sold millions of albums between 2000 and 2010.
Watkins’ ex-girlfriend, Joanne Mjadzelics, first reported him to authorities in December 2008 and was interviewed in March 2009. Mjadzelics told officers he received a message on his cell phone from Watkins about his desire to sexually abuse children.
However, it was later revealed that the phone was not examined “on the grounds that the report was malicious”.
It later emerged that between 2008 and 2012 South Wales Police had failed to adequately act on eight reports and three intelligence recordings from six people about the singer’s intentions.
Among the missed opportunities was the failure of police to visit the alleged victim and his family following Ms Mjadzelics’ complaint in 2008.
Reports from Crimestoppers in 2010 and reports from two witnesses that year and in 2012 corroborated Ms Mjadzelics’ statement, although “no progress appears to have been made”.
No action was taken following Ms. Mjadzelics’ email complaint to her ACPO inbox in 2011 that her reports were not properly investigated.
Between March and May 2012, Ms Mjadzelics reported him to South Yorkshire Police five times for child sexual offences.
He took his laptop to a police station in Doncaster on three occasions and said it contained an obscene image of a child. An IPCC report found that this was not reviewed by specialist child protection investigators and that during another visit he was told by officers that the alleged victim was an adult woman.
The laptop was later destroyed before Watkins’ arrest.
The report also revealed that a request from South Wales Police to South Yorkshire for assistance regarding Ms Mjadzelics’ allegations was forwarded to a safer neighborhood team with no specific training, rather than to child sexual abuse investigators.
The IPCC also investigated Bedfordshire Police; Two detectives were accused of misconduct for failing to record decision-making processes and failing to follow all stages of the investigation.
Police received a complaint from Ms. Mjadzelics in October 2012 that a mother allowed Watkins to abuse her 18-month-old child.
Electronic goods belonging to the mother, known as Ms. A, were not seized and no investigation was initiated.
While the police watchdog was pleased that Bedfordshire Police responded quickly to the allegation, it found the two detectives should have done more.
Ms Mjadzelics was cleared of child sexual abuse and image crimes in 2015. He claimed that he encouraged the singer to send the images to reveal his guilt.
He said the IPCC report ultimately vindicated him and “recognized that I was telling the truth from the very beginning and that I was trying to bring a serious sexual harasser to justice.”
South Wales Police Deputy Chief Jeremy Vaughan said at the time: “[The] The report highlights a series of failures in investigating information about Watkins between 2008 and 2012, which the force fully acknowledges and regrets.
“South Wales Police did not listen to information about Watkins’ disturbing behavior and did not investigate properly, for which we are truly sorry.”
When was he arrested?
Watkins’ arrest and crimes were discovered in September 2012 after police executed a drug search warrant at his home in Pontypridd, Wales.
A large number of computers, mobile phones and storage devices were seized, while analysis of the equipment revealed his immoral behavior.
He was sentenced to 29 years in prison and given a further six years on license in December 2013 after admitting a string of sexual offences.
The crimes he pleaded guilty to included the attempted rape of an 11-month-old child and a sickening video of sexual abuse filmed in a London hotel room.
While awaiting sentencing, he was quoted as saying by prison officials that everything was “megalolz” during a telephone conversation with a friend.
Described as a “dedicated and determined” pedophile, the court heard he used his power over fawning young fans to exploit them, persuading two women to help satisfy what the judge described as his “insatiable lust”.
Mr Justice Royce said: “I am satisfied that you are a highly corrupting influence, highly manipulative, a sexual predator and dangerous.”
