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Convicted paedophile Ian Watkins told fan: 'It was mega lolz' | Convicted paedophile Ian Watkins told fan: 'It was mega lolz' |
(35 minutes later) | |
The paedophile rock star Ian Watkins spoke to a female fan from prison the day after admitting two counts of attempted baby rape and said he was going to issue a statement when he was sentenced saying it had all been "mega lolz". | |
A transcript of the conversation was read out to a shocked and silent Cardiff crown court on Wednesday as the former Lostprophets frontman was being sentenced. | |
Christopher Clee QC, prosecuting, told the judge that Watkins had a conversation from Park Prison with a woman named Samantha on 27 November. | Christopher Clee QC, prosecuting, told the judge that Watkins had a conversation from Park Prison with a woman named Samantha on 27 November. |
Watkins denied being a paedophile and expressed exasperation at the way people had reacted to his guilty pleas. | Watkins denied being a paedophile and expressed exasperation at the way people had reacted to his guilty pleas. |
He said: "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." | |
Watkins explains in the conversation that he was faced with a choice before pleading guilty. "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" and end up saying: "I was off my head and do not remember anything." | |
Clee said that in a second conversation with the same woman the following day he claimed a lot of what he had said in online conversations was "bullshit chat that I did to shock when I was off my head". | Clee said that in a second conversation with the same woman the following day he claimed a lot of what he had said in online conversations was "bullshit chat that I did to shock when I was off my head". |
He insisted that no baby was ever harmed and said he was "going to release a statement and stuff". | He insisted that no baby was ever harmed and said he was "going to release a statement and stuff". |
Told by the woman that what he had planned to say might not be a good idea, he agreed, saying: "It is just lol now." | Told by the woman that what he had planned to say might not be a good idea, he agreed, saying: "It is just lol now." |
The phrase "mega lolz" was used by the Lostprophets on some of their T-shirts. The group also performed in front of a backdrop saying MEGA LOLZ! on the main stage of the Reading festival in 2010. | |
Clee also detailed for the court the specific images found on the singer's computers. Of a total of 90 child abuse images, 24 fell into the most severe category. He also possessed 22 separate bestiality images. | |
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