Two suspects named by police in Ian Watkins murder case

Posted On October 13, 2025October 13, 2025

Two suspects involved in the murder of former Lostprophets rock singer Ian Watkins have been named by West Yorkshire Police.

The disgraced rock star was murdered inside HMP Wakefield prison on October 11th, while he was serving a 35-year sentence as a convicted paedophile for a string of child sex offences, including an attempt to rape a baby.

In a fresh update issued on October 13th, West Yorkshire Police confirmed that the two men previously arrested on suspicion of Watkins’ murder will appear at Leeds Magistrate Court later on the same day. They named the two suspects as 25-year-old Rashid Gedel and 43-year-old Samuel Dodsworth, who are both serving undisclosed separate sentences at HMP Wakefield. 

Previously announcing that the two suspects had been arrested and that a murder investigation was underway, West Yorkshire Police said over the weekend: “Officers were called by staff at the prison at 9.39am this morning (Saturday 11 October) to reports of a serious assault on a prisoner. A man aged 48 was found with serious injuries. Despite medical attention he was pronounced dead at the scene.”

They added: “Detectives from the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team are investigating and enquiries remain ongoing.”

According to reports in The Sun, Watkins was killed by being slashed in the jugular in an ambush attack, where he eventually died due to blood loss. A source told the publication at the time: “He was targeted by another inmate who shanked him in the neck.”

Watkins was also previously assaulted inside the prison two years ago, where he was held hostage for six hours by other inmates and stabbed multiple times, before being freed.

The former Lostprophets frontman had been convicted of a string of child sex offences in a criminal case held in 2013, where he admitted to the rape and sexual assault of a child who was under the age of 13. He also admitted to the conspiracy to rape a child, three counts of sexual assault involving children, seven counts of taking, making or possessing obscene images of children, and one count of possessing an extreme image involving a sex act on an animal.