Ian Watkins: police pursue new leads after former Lostprophets frontman's child sex conviction

A mugshot of Ian Watkins released by South Wales Police following his guilty pleas (PA)

Police are pursuing new leads in the Ian Watkins child sex abuse case after a flurry of calls triggered by an appeal for unknown victims to come forward.

Paedophile rocker Watkins admitted two counts of attempted rape on a baby, on the eve of a contested trial this week.

The former Lostprophets frontman's admissions included conspiracy to rape a baby, sexually touching a one-year-old and possessing and making films of child abuse.

The 36-year-old, from Pontypridd, South Wales, plotted the shocking abuse with the two mothers of the babies in a series of text and internet messages.

Senior South Wales police vowed to carry on investigating Watkins after his admissions at Cardiff Crown Court on Tuesday.

Detective chief inspector Peter Doyle said the force would "work tirelessly to identify any other victims or witnesses and seek the justice they deserve."

He also appealed for anyone who has been "affected" by the Watkins child sex abuse case to make contact.

A spokesman for the force said today that it had "received a number of calls as a result of the telephone numbers we published in the appeal".

He said he could not give the number of calls received or the information passed to police but they were being followed up by officers.

The comments will only add to the growing fear that Watkins's guilty pleas offer only a glimpse of the true extent of his drug-fuelled debauchery.

Former girlfriend Joanna Majic, 38, alleged this week that sex predator Watkins had abused hundreds of young victims during years of secret offending.

She claimed besotted female fans of the paedophile are hiding the true extent of his offending because they secretly offered their children for abuse.

She repeatedly reported Watkins to the police from 2008 onwards but her accusations were not acted on at the time.

"I've always said to the police, there's hundreds of victims out there and you're never going to find them because the mothers are in on it," she said in an interview.

When police informed her last year that Watkins had been arrested she replied: " 'You're four years too late,' because if they'd have done something in 2008 he never would have done anything."

Anyone who has been affected by the Watkins case, or other cases of child abuse, is urged to contact South Wales Police on 029 20634184 or the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.

PA