The 48‑year‑old, who fronted Welsh band Lostprophets before being jailed for child sexual offences, was serving a 29‑year sentence at the high‑security prison when he was fatally injured on 11 October.
At Wakefield Coroner’s Court on Friday, Coroner Oliver Longstaff confirmed Watkins — referred to in full as Ian David Karslake Watkins — was pronounced dead at the jail by a doctor and formally identified by a prison officer.
Paramedics had been called to the prison “following a report he had been stabbed in the neck”. A post‑mortem examination recorded the cause of death as an incision wound to the neck.
The inquest was formally opened and adjourned, with proceedings suspended pending the outcome of criminal investigations.
Two men charged with murder
Two inmates — Rashid (Rico) Gedel, 25, and Samuel Dodsworth, 43 — have been charged with Watkins’ murder. They appeared in court last week but were not asked to enter pleas.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed that two further prisoners, aged 23 and 39, have since been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder. Both men were bailed and returned to custody while inquiries continue.
How Watkins went from fame to infamy
Watkins, originally from Pontypridd, rose to fame in the early 2000s with Lostprophets before being convicted in 2013 of a series of serious child sex offences. He was serving his sentence at HMP Wakefield, a Category A prison often referred to as “Monster Mansion”.
The coroner’s investigation into his death will remain on hold until the conclusion of the criminal justice process against those accused.
