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South Wales police have revealed they expect to make more arrests in connection to the Ian Watkins sex case, and have revealed the extent of information recovered from the shamed Lostprophets' star's computers.
Detective Chief Inspector Peter Doyle, the senior investigating officer in the case, described the global investigation as "unique", adding officers believe there may be more victims out there, and they will be pursuing "a number of lines of inquiry".
DCI Doyle outlined the harrowing case as a "difficult and traumatic investigation". Watkins, 36, admitted to two counts of attempting to rape a baby as well as a string of other child sex offences, and was jailed for 29 years yesterday (December 18), with an extra 6 years served on extended license.
Describing the sheer scale of the shocking case, Doyle told WalesOnline: "The investigation has been very complex. We recovered computer storage material of some 27 terabytes - that is four or five times the size of South Wales Police’s computer system put together.
"The imagery and evidence that we have gained from some of that data has been absolutely horrific and certainly the worst I’ve ever seen in my 28 years of police service.
"That said, we are professional police officers and we are trained in dealing with difficult matters and, however difficult it has been for us, it has been far more difficult for the victims and families who have suffered this abuse first-hand and my thoughts are very much with those people."
Two anonymous female accomplices were also jailed yesterday, receiving 14 and 17 years respectively. Judge Justice Royce told Watkins and Mothers A & B that their actions 'plumbed new depths of depravity' and that the case 'breaks new ground'.
Prior to yesterday's sentencing, Watkins had admitted charges of attempting to rape a baby, and the sexual assault of a child under 13.
He also admitted three counts of sexual assault involving children and six involving taking, making and possessing indecent images of children and one of possessing an extreme pornographic image involving a sex act on an animal.
The court had also been told how Watkins had extreme illegal pornography on his computers, had planned to blow meth smoke in a baby's face, and even filmed encounters he'd had with 16-year-old Lostprophets fans in school uniforms after preying on them in Lostprophets chatrooms.
Watkins' former bandmates are yet to release a statement concerning the verdict.
