Lostprophets Singer Ian Watkins Sentenced to 35 Years for Child Sex Offenses
- Selena Hill
- Dec 18, 2013 05:38 PM EST
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Ian Watkins was once famous for being a rock star and the lead singer of the alternative rock band Lostprophets. However, on Wednesday the disgraced rocker was sentenced to 35 years in prison for multiple sex offences, including the attempted rape of a baby.
The 36-year-old British singer, who pleaded guilty to 13 child sex offenses in November, was visibly shaken after hearing his jail sentence, all while bystanders cheered from the public gallery at the Cardiff Crown Court, reports Sky News.
He will serve 29 years in jail and remain under police supervision for the last six years. He will be up for parole only after serving two-thirds of the sentence.
In addition, two female co-defendants, who pleaded guilty to various sex offenses against their own children, were also sentenced. The unidentified women, aged 21 and 25, will be jailed for 14 years and 17 years respectively, reports the BBC.
Watkins was convicted of sexually touching one of the women's 11-month-old baby before trying to have sex with the toddler. He also lured a fan to abuse her child during a webcam chat in addition to secretly stashing child porn videos, some of which he had made himself.
Justice Royce QC told Watkins and the two co-defendants, "What you three did plumbs new depths of depravity".
The judge also scolded Watkins, stating "You had many fawning fans. That gave you power. You knew you could use that power to induce young female fans to ... help satisfy your insatiable lust and take part in the sexual abuse of their own children. Away from the highlights of your public performances lay a dark and sinister side."
Detective Chief Inspector Peter Doyle described Watkins as a "committed, organized pedophile," who displayed "no empathy, no sympathy or any remorse."
A couple of days after he admitted to the attempted rape in court, Watkins talked to a female fan from prison, referring to the incident as "mega lolz," according to The Guardian.
"I'm going to put out a statement on the 18th just to say it was mega lolz. I do not know what everybody is getting so freaked out about," he said, according to a transcript of the conversation. "It was like either I go up there and say: 'Come on it was not that bad. Nobody got hurt,' [or] try to win them over with my charm."
Not this time, Ian.
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