Lostprophets Appeal for Victims of Singer Ian Watkins to Come Forward
Ian Watkins’ former bandmates have urged any victims of the peadophile to come forward after the disgraced rock star admitted attempting to rape a baby last week.
Lostprophets members Jamie Oliver, Lee Gaze, Luke Johnson, Mike Lewis, Stuart Richardson released a joint statement on the group’s Facebook page saying they were “heartbroken, angry, and disgusted” by the actions of Watkins.
They also revealed the relationship between Watkins and his band mates had “deteriorated in recent years”, making working together “miserable”.
The 35-year-old from Pontypridd, Wales, faces jail after he admitted attempting to rape the 11-month-old baby of one fan and conspiring to rape the baby daughter of another.
The two fans, 21, from Yorkshire, and 24, from Bedfordshire, – who cannot be named for legal reasons – are also facing jail after admitting their role in the sex offences on their own children.
The remaining members of the emo-rock group, which sold more than 3.5million albums across the world, announced they were splitting up before Watkins trial was due to start in Cardiff last week.
The statement read: “We are heartbroken, angry, and disgusted at what has been revealed.
“This is something that will haunt us for the rest of our lives.
“Being in a band has always been a labour of love and a platform to inspire people, not to take advantage of them.
“It’s still hard to believe this is happening and that someone we were once so close to has destroyed so many lives, lying every step of the way.
“Our hearts go out to Ian’s family, the fans and friends he betrayed, and most importantly, the victims of his crimes and others like them.
“We hope for justice, but also that Ian will truly take responsibility for what he’s done. We would urge any other victims to contact the authorities.”
Lostprophets grew from being a small band from Pontypridd in south Wales to one of the most popular acts in the ’emo’ genre.
They had two top ten hits – Last Train Home in 2004 and Rooftops in 2006 – and number one album, Liberation Transmission, also in 2006.
Music retailer HMV has confirmed it will no longer be selling the band’s music.
Watkins admitted in court using a number of Class A drugs, including crystal meth, and the statement from the band said this contributed towards a deterioration in the group’s relationship with the singer.
It read: “Many of you understandably want to know if we knew what Ian was doing. To be clear: We did not.
“We knew that Ian was a difficult character. Our personal relationships with him had deteriorated in recent years to a point that working together was a constant, miserable challenge.
“But despite his battles with drugs, his egotistic behaviour, and the resulting fractures and frustrations within our band, we never imagined him capable of behaviour of the type he has now admitted.”
Watkins will be sentenced, alongside the two women, on December 18.