[5] The documentary features archival footage including home movies, social media posts, text messages, and law enforcement recordings. Killer Dad: Chris Watts speaks . [3] Christopher was employed by Anadarko Petroleum, while Shanann worked from home selling a product called Thrive for the multi-level marketing company Le-Vel. [18] He was denied bail at his first court appearance. [19], Christopher pleaded guilty to the murders on November 6. They went to his house and then went to the Shelby mustang museum. From Chris Watts mistresses first police interview, it was clear she was keeping secrets. Kessinger only knew about the disappearance by what she saw on the news. They went to the Bandimere Speedway to watch the drag races. Shanann and her two daughters were found to be missing the day after she had returned from a … He received an additional 48 years for the unlawful termination of Shanann's pregnancy and 36 years for three charges of tampering with a deceased body. He went to sleep at 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. and woke between 4:30 and 5. Police fileText messages between Chris and his mistress. In August 2018, Chris Watts pleaded guilty to murdering his pregnant wife, Shanann Watts, and … Nichol Kessinger and Chris Watts were having an affair when he killed his wife and kids. He loaded Shanann's body and the girls, without their car seats, into the back seat of his work truck. [32], "Chris Watts: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know", "Christopher Watts and Shanann Watts: Their friends saw a 'perfect' family. [31] Shanann's family spoke out against the film, stating that they had not been consulted about it and were not aware of its making until it was already in production. She went to the Colorado Rockies baseball game with him. He told her he needed to go to the field to check on a release, a small oil leak. After Shanann missed a business meeting, Atkinson went to the Watts' home at about 12:10 p.m.[7][8] When the doorbell and knocks went unanswered, Atkinson notified Christopher, who was at work, and called the Frederick Police Department. Aaron Danielson aka ‘Jay Bishop’: Portland Shooting Victim Named. In 2019, Colorado man Chris Watts confessed to killing his pregnant wife, Shanann Watts, and their two daughters, Celeste and Bella in August 2018. He was scared to tell her about the pregnancy because he felt like Kessinger wouldn’t have gone on a date with him if she knew. [27][28], On a December 2018 episode of the American talk show Dr. Phil, Dr. Phil consulted with four crime experts: former prosecutor and TV journalist Nancy Grace, former FBI profiler Candice DeLong, law enforcement consultant Steve Kardian, and body language expert Susan Constantine. She questioned why Celeste’s epi pen would have been left behind by Shanann. In an interview on Dr. Phil, Christopher's lawyer claimed that Christopher confessed to killing Shanann after an argument regarding divorce. [25][26] HLN aired a special report show that same month titled Family Massacre: Chris Watts Exposed, in which footage of Christopher from police body cameras and security cameras in the police station's interview room were revealed. “Chris asked if we were going to talk to Kessinger and we said yes,” police wrote. “I thought, ‘If he was able to lie to me and hide something that big, what else was he lying about?’ ”. [20][21], On December 3, 2018, Christopher was moved to an out-of-state location due to "security concerns". Shanann was pregnant at the time of her death and the fetus also died. He’s convicted of first-degree murder, unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and tampering with a deceased dead body. How does Chris Watts’s extended family feel about his crimes? 1,449 Shares Tweet. The infamous family annihilator Chris Watts is living out his days at Dodge Correctional Institute. Case in American Murder: The Family Next Door. [23][24], On a December 2018 episode of the ABC News series 20/20, Shanann's parents were interviewed for the first time since she and the girls were murdered. [13] He gave interviews to Denver stations KMGH-TV and KUSA-TV outside the house, pleading for the return of his wife and daughters. While being interviewed by police, Christopher Lee Watts (born May 16, 1985) admitted to murdering his pregnant wife Shanann Cathryn Watts (née Rzucek; born January 10, 1984) by strangulation. You can read them below. [30], On January 26, 2020, Lifetime released a film called Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature film. On November 19, he was sentenced to five life sentences—three consecutive and two concurrent—without the possibility of parole. The police reports say Chris told Nichol he was filing for divorce. They were supportive of his decision to accept the plea deal. READ NEXT: Aaron Danielson aka ‘Jay Bishop’: Portland Shooting Victim Named, Nichol Kessinger & Chris Watts’ Text Messages to Each Other [READ], Copyright © 2021 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Culture Netflix True Crime Documentary Chris Watts had a mistress in the weeks before he murdered his pregnant wife and two daughters, and she played a crucial role in his conviction. Chris Watts even asked Nichol Kessinger to help her find an apartment for him and his daughters. His sentence began immediately. [10] Her car, which still contained the girls' car seats, was in the garage. It's been nearly a year since Chris Watts murdered his pregnant wife, Shanann, and … “Nichol Kessinger turned out to have information that I can best describe as being a bombshell,” said Weld County District Attorney … Chris Watts’ girlfriend at the time of the murders was Nichol Kessinger. According to the affidavit, he was having an affair and claimed he asked for a separation from Shanann. [3][4] At the time of her death, she was 15 weeks pregnant with a son who was to be named Nico. YouTube Nichol Kessinger and Chris Watts. She told the Denver Post she thought he was almost divorced when she met him and that he seemed thoughtful. Kessinger was not implicated in the deaths in any way. Nichol Kessinger and Chris Watts started speaking at work in June 2018, and by July 2018, the pair had started a romantic relationship. American Murder: The Family Next Door tells of the murder of Shanann Watts and her three children, Bella, Celeste and unborn son Nico Lee, at the hands of Chris Watts in 2018. He was sentenced to five life sentences without the possibility of parole, three to be served consecutively. On August 21, Christopher was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, including an additional one count per child cited as "death of a child who had not yet attained 12 years of age and the defendant was in a position of trust", unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and three counts of tampering with a deceased human body. [29] On a January 2019 episode of the talk show The Dr. Oz Show, commentary is provided on his case by the neighbor who helped build the case against him, who is interviewed in-studio. Powered by. After having a meal, they returned to Nichol’s home. … He did pay one time with a credit card, which made her feel he had nothing left to lose or didn’t care anymore if his wife knew. On August 11, 2018, shortly before the murders, Chris drove to her home in his Lexus. She said they had just met. They went to the Great Sand Dunes National Monument and tent camped. On Aug. 13, 2018, Watts murdered his pregnant wife & two daughters. The authorities located the bodies of the Watts family on the Anadarko Petroleum site on August 16. She didn’t know his wife was pregnant but she does now, he told authorities. The Watts family murders occurred in Frederick, Colorado, during the early morning hours of August 13, 2018.While being interviewed by police, Christopher Lee Watts (born May 16, 1985) admitted to murdering his pregnant wife Shanann Cathryn Watts (née Rzucek; born January 10, 1984) by strangulation.He later admitted to killing their daughters, four-year-old Bella and three … The girls were happy. La nouvelle de leur disparition se répand très vite dans les médias nationaux et la police, le Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) ainsi que … It stars Sean Kleier as Christopher and Ashley Williams as Shanann. He said she didn’t know he was going to kill his family. The crime is featured in a new Netflix show that describes the disintegrating marriage between Watts and his wife before the murders. At a later hearing, his bail was set at $5 million, with him being required to put down 15% to be released. He asked to speak to his father before confessing. Nichol Kessinger claimed she didn't know Chris Watts was married when they began an adulterous affair before he killed his wife and two daughters Convicted family annihilator Chris Watts told investigators that the woman he was having an affair with at the time of his wife and daughters’ murders was aware … Some texts could not be recovered, but some were. Here are love letters and birthday cards chris watts sent to his mistress nicole On November 6, 2018, he pleaded guilty to multiple counts of first-degree murder as part of a plea deal when the death penalty (which was later abolished in Colorado in 2020) was removed from sentencing. [6] Later that day, Shanann and the girls were reported missing by Atkinson, who became concerned when Shanann missed a scheduled OB-GYN appointment and failed to return her text messages. [1] They had two daughters: Bella Marie Watts (born December 17, 2013) and Celeste Cathryn "CeCe" Watts (born July 17, 2015). ", "Colorado family struggled with finances before man allegedly killed pregnant wife, kids", "Colorado man arrested as hunt for family leads to body of pregnant wife, possible remains of young daughters", "American Murder: The Family Next Door | Netflix Official Site", "Mom & Kids Vanish, Husband Pleads for Help – Then 3 Bodies Turn Up: How Watts Murder Case Unfolded", "Man arrested for killing his pregnant wife and daughters, days after pleading for their return", "Colorado Man Claims He Killed Pregnant Wife After She Strangled Their Daughters", "Chris Watts case: Everything to know so far about the alleged murders of his wife, daughters", "Chris Watts update: Is he "haunted" by the murder of his family? He later smothered his daughters with a blanket there. It wasn’t fair to me to have him lie to me and make me think that everything is going to plan and still to this day I don’t even know what’s a lie and what’s not,” Nichol told police, according to Decider. Chris Watts, 33, told Nichol Kessinger his family had "gone" at around 3.45pm on August 13, the very day Shannan, 34, Bella, four, and Celeste, three, were reported missing. As reported by … Watts tried to blame the deaths of the girls on Shanann, saying he snapped and strangled her after she killed them, but prosecutors and a jury didn’t buy it. Chris Watts was there, and so were his two daughters. In the early hours of August 13, 2018, Chris Watts murdered his pregnant wife and two young daughters. He disposed of their bodies in oil tanks and on the properly of Anadarko, the company where he worked in Colorado. The voluminous police file in the case contains details about Nichol Kessinger’s affair with Watts, and it also contains copies of some of their text messages. Nichol voiced some suspicions to Chris after his family went missing, the police reports say. Christopher then told her that Shanann was sick. It was the first time she was at his home. An officer arrived to conduct a welfare check at about 1:40 p.m.[9] During the welfare check, Christopher gave the police officer permission to search the house,[10] where the family dog was discovered unharmed but no sign of Shanann or the girls. According to the arrest affidavit and footage from a security camera in the interview room, he failed a polygraph test and subsequently confessed to murdering Shanann. Christopher initially told police he had no idea where Shanann and the girls might be and had not seen his wife since 5:15 a.m. the previous day, when he left for work. Chris said Kessinger knew he was married with kids. Christopher and Shanann were North Carolina natives, with Christopher hailing from Spring Lake and Shanann from Aberdeen. During the investigation, he claimed Shanann had strangled the girls in response to his request for separation and that he had then strangled her in a fit of rage and transported the bodies to a remote oil-storage site leased by his employer, Anadarko Petroleum. … Nicole Kessinger, Chris Watts' mistress, is shown posing for him while he takes photographs of her in a bikini before he murdered his wife and children in August last year ", "Neighbor says Chris Watts "cared more about the dog" than pregnant wife and 2 toddlers he allegedly killed", "Shanann Watts' girls may have been dead when she got home, husband's charges show", "Shanann Watts' family denounces upcoming Lifetime movie about daughter's murder", "The scent of death: Police dogs and the Chris Watts investigation", "Chris Watts murder case: Everything we know so far about the deaths of his wife, daughters", "Chris Watts: Wife killed our girls, so I strangled her", "Christopher Watts will serve 3 life sentences for murdering wife Shanann, 2 daughters", "Chris Watts case: What we learned from unsealed affidavit", "Dr. Phil exclusive: Chris Watts' confession and his daughter's final words", "Christopher Watts sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing his pregnant wife and young daughters", "Chris Watts sentenced to life for 'inhumane' killings of two daughters and pregnant wife", "Killer Chris Watts Moved To Unknown Prison Due To 'Safety Concerns, "Final Rotting Place: Chris Watts Arrives At Wisconsin Prison To Serve Life Sentence", "NBC15 Investigates: Inmate transfer process, Chris Watts confirmed in WI", "Chris Watts' In-Laws Didn't Want Him to Go on TV When Family Vanished – but They 'Thank God He Did, "Chris Watts appears nervous in hours after murder, new video shows", "New evidence released in Chris Watts case", "Dr. Oz to feature episode on Chris Watts case Tuesday afternoon on KOAA 5", "More 'Ripped From The Headlines' With Nia Vardalos, Lyndsy Fonseca, Kirstie Alley, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Jenn Lyon", "American Murder The Family Next Door Trailer Released By Netflix: Describes The Story Of The 2018's Watts Family Murders", "DA describes how Chris Watts "coldly and deliberately ended four lives, "Judge officially sentences Chris Watts to life in prison", "Investigators Discuss Chris Watts' Case | Criminal Confessions Highlights", "How Chris Watts' Investigators Got a Confession Out of Him | Criminal Confessions Bonus Videos", "What happened the morning pregnant mom, two daughters went missing (Nightline)", Responding officer's body camera of the entire investigation, with an explanation of body language read by the officer, The People of the State of Colorado v. Christopher Lee Watts, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Watts_family_murders&oldid=1008743409, Violence against women in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Shanann (wife), Bella Marie (daughter), Celeste "CeCe" (daughter), Nico (unborn son), This page was last edited on 24 February 2021, at 20:59. A confession letter from Chris Watts in jail suggests murder of wife Shanann and daughters was premeditated. Nichol told police about some of their activities before the murders. Chris Watts says mistress Nichol Kessinger LIED to police, knew he was married — and that he hopes she isn’t writing to him in prison under a fake identity. He was always full of energy and didn’t need to sleep. Murder suspect Chris Watts and his two little girls, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celste, were just at Lindstrom’s home for Jeremy’s little boy’s birthday party. The death penalty was not put forward by the district attorney on the request of Shanann's family, who did not wish for any further deaths. https://shakedowntitle.com/2018/08/23/is-she-chris-wattss-mystery-mistress The police reports say that Chris Watts told authorities that he and Kessinger always talked about their day. He was using the gift cards to hide their relationship. nickvdl (Post author) October 11, 2018 at 12:06 pm Niko. Read their text messages. Chris Watts murdered his wife Shan'ann and daughters, Celeste and Bella - the story of the harrowing killings, American Murder: The Family Next Door is streaming on Netflix now The family lived in a five-bedroom home in Frederick, Colorado, which they purchased in 2013,[2] and declared bankruptcy in 2015. [11] The searchers discovered her purse containing her phone and keys. [13], On September 30, 2020, Netflix released American Murder: The Family Next Door, a documentary about the murders. She just thought they were going too hang out more after he got his own place. Ronnie and Cynthia Watts have broken their silence just a week after their son, Chris Watts, 33, pleaded guilty to murdering his pregnant wife, Shanann, 34, … March 7, 2019. by Ellen Killoran. They were normal. Sharon Tate bled out, that was her cause of death, from multiple stab wounds, baby Paul Polanski was unharmed, but suffocated inside the womb up to 20 minutes after Sharon died. [14][15], Christopher was arrested late on August 15, 2018. Nichol Kessinger Is Part of 'Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer', but She Didn’t Want the Spotlight By Chrissy Bobic. He wasn’t part of the environmental team, so that seemed odd too. During the murder, Bella walked in on the couple. Chris Watts would have had a pretty tough time removing their fetus himself, and no time to do so. The Watts family murders occurred in Frederick, Colorado, during the early morning hours of August 13, 2018. He facetimed her on the evening of August 12. The girls' bodies were found in crude oil storage tanks, while Shanann and their unborn son were buried in a shallow grave nearby.[17]. [16], Christopher was fired by the company on August 15, the day of his arrest. However, Google searches in police reports show she searched things like “marrying your mistress.” She didn’t know his wife was pregnant. He was wearing a black wife beater t shirt and was laying on a mattress with no sheets on it. They went to the Lazy Dog Bar. On August 13, he said that his children’s sheets were smelly and commented about Shanann’s wedding ring. [12] Shanann's wedding ring was found on the bedside table at Shananns side of the bed. In the HLN special: Killer Dad: Chris Watts Speaks, that aired last week, a woman named Anna, who says she visits Watts in jail around every two weeks or so, says that Watts feels if it weren't for Nicole Kessinger he would never have killed his family. According to the Denver Post, on the day Watts’ wife and kids vanished, he texted Kessinger that his family was “gone.” He said Shanann took the girls on a play date and didn’t come back and he “didn’t show any emotion.”, “When I read the news, I found out he was still married and his wife was 15 weeks pregnant,” Kessinger told the Denver Post. Watts and Kessinger both worked at Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, which is where they met and started an affair about a month and a half before the murders. What happened? Who is Nichol Kessinger and where is she now? He’s serving life sentences without parole for all of the murders. Reply. Investigators with search dogs could be heard on the property during the interview. They met in 2010 and were married in Mecklenburg County on November 3, 2012, according to online records. He didn’t necessarily have to … He usually comes to the office location in the mornings. [10], The FBI and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation joined the investigation the next day. Chris Watts posing with his family, who he would go on to brutally slay to make way for a life with his mistress. Christopher was home with their daughters. They tried to see Jurassic Park but it was sold out, so they walked to a bench near Victoria’s secret and talked for two hours and then attended the 9 p.m. show. He said “she genuinely liked me.” He begged the police not to put Kessinger’s name in the news because she had been through enough in her life.