Culminating in multiple life sentences, the Chris Watts case is one of the more horrific
and senseless murder cases of the last decade.
So what led to the murder of Watts' wife, two daughters, and unborn son?
In August 2018, Chris Watts made a televised plea for the safe return of his missing wife,
Shanann Watts, and their two daughters; 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste, also known as
Cece; after the three were reported missing by a family friend.
Chris told Denver7 in an interview:
"I hope that she's somewhere safe right now and with the kids."
Sadly, only two days after the interview, bodies thought to belong to Shanann and the
children were discovered by police at Chris' former place of employment, Anadarko Petroleum
Company.
Bella and Celeste's remains were reportedly located in crude oil tanks, while Shanann,
who was 15 weeks pregnant, was found in a shallow grave on the property.
Chris was arrested one day before the remains were recovered, and he confessed to killing
Shannan in anger after allegedly witnessing her strangle their two kids.
In a video released by the 19th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Chris stated:
"My babies are gone, and I put hands around my wife’s neck and did that same thing."
In a sworn affidavit, Chris claimed that his wife's alleged killings of the girls happened
after he told Shanann that he wanted a separation.
Prosecutors charged him with nine felonies, including three counts of first-degree murder.
But in a shocking twist, Chris pled guilty to all of the murder charges, including those
of the children, on November 6th, 2018, just months after he'd pointed the finger at Shanann.
He was eventually sentenced to three consecutive life terms for his unimaginable crimes.
But just when you thought you'd heard the entire tragic story of the Watts family case,
in February 2019 the convicted killer gave a full confession detailing the horrific crimes.
One of the devastating questions about this case rests on whether Bella and Celeste Watts
were already dead when Shanann Watts arrived home from a business trip in Arizona.
All we know for sure is this: On the night of August 13th, 2018, Shanann was dropped
off at her home around 2 a.m, by a friend, Nickole Atkinson.
According to court documents, prosecutors believe it's possible that she and her daughters
died sometime between August 12th and August 13, 2018.
This timeline suggests Chris Watts possibly harmed his daughters before Shanann arrived
home.
We'll probably never know exactly what happened that night, but Chris clarified the timeline
when he spoke with investigators from jail in February 2019.
Chris claimed that, after arguing with Shanann about their marriage, he strangled her to
death.
According to The Coloradan, Bella supposedly woke up during the commotion and asked:
"What's wrong with mommy?"
Chris said he then placed the girls and Shanann's body into his truck, drove approximately 45
minutes to his worksite, and killed the girls one by one after burying his wife in a shallow
grave.
He claimed to have smothered Cece first, then Bella, who supposedly pleaded for her life
before she was killed.
Of course, there's always the possibility Chris fabricated these new details given his
history with lying.
But there's no denying the scenario wrecked Shanann's family, as Shanann's brother, Frank
Rzueck Jr., told Dr. Phil McGraw in March 2019:
"It's worse than we even thought.
We thought the worst was what we heard already, you know?"
Considering Shanann was 15 weeks pregnant at the time of her death, it's reasonable
for people to wonder why Chris wasn't charged with killing his unborn son, who they reportedly
were to name Nico.
The explanation?
Colorado doesn't have fetal homicide laws in place, which means authorities weren't
able to include Nico on its victim list.
A total of 38 states recognize unborn children in murder cases, while eight states, Colorado,
Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, New Mexico, Oregon, and Wyoming, have laws against harming
pregnant women.
Prosecutors in Colorado, where Shanann and her daughters were murdered, charged Chris
with the unlawful termination of a pregnancy in accordance with state law.
Additionally, some might argue that charging Chris with an additional death wouldn't affect
his punishment, since he's already serving three consecutive life sentences in prison,
meaning there is no possible chance for parole.
Before Chris Watts pleaded guilty to the murders, it looked like his defense team was preparing
to place the blame on Shanann Watts.
Want proof?
According to the Washington Post, Chris' lawyers filed a motion for investigators to swab the
girls' necks and hands for possible DNA evidence.
Additionally, the defense requested that a DNA expert of their choosing be present during
the collection process, as reported by CNN.
The defense was likely trying to back up Chris' past claim that Shanann had strangled their
daughters to death following a fight about their marriage.
But likely to Chris' chagrin, the judge denied all of the defense's requests.
According to CNN, the ruling stated:
"The court cannot order the prosecution and/or coroner how to conduct their investigation."
After the release of the joint law enforcement interview of Chris in February 2019, during
which he confessed to killing his daughters in addition to his wife, Shanann's loved ones
expressed relief that her name was finally cleared.
Rzucek family attorney Stephen Lambert told Southern Colorado NBC affiliate KOAA News
5:
"These tapes put to rest any kind of that speculation, and that Shanann's memory can
be put to rest as a loving mother and a caring wife."
One of Chris' possible motives involves financial struggles, a common source of tension between
married couples.
Chris and Shanann filed for bankruptcy in June 2015, after they bought their $400,000
house in Colorado, according to CNN.
The two were reportedly $70,000 in debt, a total they racked up thanks to student loans
and credit card purchases.
Their savings appeared to be a total of $9.51 in one account and $864 in a joint checking
account.
Although Shanann reportedly made $80,000 a year, it's possible Chris was concerned about
the cost of another child.
This alleged motive, however, has not been confirmed.
Another potential motive?
Chris' alleged affair.
Denise Mowder, a former prosecutor and an associate professor of criminology and criminal
justice at MSU Denver, theorized that Chris allegedly murdered his family in order to
live an unencumbered life with his rumored mistress.
Mowder told Denver7:
"I think he had a vision of another life with this other woman, carefree, no responsibilities."
Chris denied these theories, however, claiming he felt rage after Shanann supposedly threatened
to take their kids away.
"I didn't want to do this, but I did it," he plainly told investigators in February
2019, in audio transcribed by The Coloradan.
There are a few discrepancies in Chris Watts' version of what happened the night of August
13th, 2018, something the public is well aware of by now.
But what many people don't know is that Chris allegedly lied about Shanann Watts' whereabouts
from the very beginning.
Nickole Atkinson, the friend who was reportedly the last to see Shanann alive, said she knew
something was wrong when Chris was supposedly evasive about where his wife went on the morning
of her disappearance.
Atkinson, who was concerned after Shanann missed an important pregnancy checkup, opened
up about her bizarre exchange with Chris.
She told Good Morning America:
"He just kept saying that he didn't know where she was and that she was on a playdate.
But he couldn't give us the name of the friend."
Atkinson continued:
"I knew he had something to do with it the day I was at his house with him, but I didn't
want to think that."
Chris Watts was allegedly having an affair with a co-worker at the time he murdered his
family.
The disturbing detail came to light in Chris' arrest affidavit, in which police claimed
they found evidence of his cheating following an investigation.
The co-worker Chris supposedly had an affair with, who reportedly cooperated with the investigation,
was later identified as Nicho Kessinger.
In addition to Kessinger, an unnamed man took to HLN's Crime & Justice with Ashleigh Banfield
in August 2018 to claim he carried on a relationship with Chris for ten months.
The alleged lover said he met Chris online, and that they parted ways sometime in March
or April 2018, as reported by Us Weekly.
But multiple news outlets couldn't confirm the man's account, and it's not clear if police
investigated his allegations.
What is obvious?
Many people weren't happy that the show's host, Ashleigh Banfield, went ahead with the
interview given the lack of corroborating details.
Whether Shanann Watts knew about Chris' alleged affairs or not, the answer isn't clear.
Shanann's friend Nickole Atkinson said in an interview with ABC News:
"There was speculation [about an affair], but she didn't want to believe that either...He
wasn't being the loving Chris that he normally was.
He wasn't touching or hugging or doing stuff like that.
And he wasn't being as attentive to the girls as he normally is."
Murder suspects are often portrayed in an unflattering light.
Whether they're a loner or are emotionally disturbed or angry, there's typically something
off about someone who is accused of a violent crime.
But in the case of Chris Watts, this stereotype doesn't seem to fit.
"My Daddy is a hero, he helps me grow up strong."
One high school friend, for instance, couldn't believe the Watts she knew had been charged
with murder.
Former classmate Brandi Smith told the Daily Beast:
"Most of our conversations that I recall were about music and things like that...I was a
bit of an outcast and he kinda just seemed to understand me."
Then there's Lance Alfonso, who played football with Watts.
He revealed to the Daily Beast:
"I've never seen him ever get angry at anybody, even on the football field."
Of course, a lot can change between high school and adulthood, and you can never know what's
truly going on inside another person's head.
One of the most haunting and poignant aspects of the Watts murder case is Shanann Watts'
social media presence.
Shanann's Facebook account features countless photos of the mom happily posing with Chris
Watts and their two daughters, as well as snaps of the couple enjoying romantic vacations
together.
Translation: Shanann and Chris' lives seemed picture perfect.
Given the tragic events that occurred, it's fair to wonder if Shanann and Chris might
have been putting on a front for the outside world.
A neighbor named Melinda Phillips suggested as much in an interview with People, recalling
a, quote, "argument" she witnessed between the two earlier in the summer of 2018.
"Their body language was really angry, and they were just fighting back and forth...He
was gesturing [with] his hands and they were shaking their heads, and it was definitely
an argument."
But things took a strange turn when Shanann and Chris supposedly caught Phillips' eye
mid-fight.
Phillips claimed:
"They caught my eye and suddenly, everything changed...They stopped being so angry, and
they started talking a lot more calmly.
He even gave her a hug.
Mind you, this was in the space of 30 seconds to a minute."
Phillips added,
"From a full-blown fight to hugs in less than a minute, it was incredible."
Shanann Watts' younger brother, Frank Rzucek Jr., took to Facebook shortly after Chris
Watts' arrest to express his rage and sadness about the situation.
According to a screenshot obtained by The Sun, he wrote:
"I just want to know why.
My precious family my one and only sibling, my sister Shanann, 2 adorable nieces Bella
and Celeste and her soon to be found out unborn son Niko...I just want 30 seconds alone with
that heartless psychopath.
May Satan have mercy on his soul."
But Chris wasn't Frank's only target.
He also went after investigators for supposedly taking too long to arrest Shanann's husband.
Frank wrote:
"The cops drug their feet.
He was the only one with them and backed his truck into the garage.
Doesn't take a genius to know who was suspect.
My blood is boiling and the pain and anger and sadness I have in my heart."
Frank ended his post with a message for Chris, saying:
"Nothing absolutely nothing would get in my way of taking away his life like he did mine
and my ENTIRE FAMILY."
Cops arrested Chris two days after Shanann was reported missing, but it's likely Shanann's
brother was frustrated that authorities didn't take Chris into custody the same day.
Other than investigators' jailhouse interview with Chris Watts in February 2019, the convicted
killer hasn't spoken out.
That is, until first-time author Cherlyn Cadle published a book in September 2019 detailing
her written correspondence and prison visits with Chris, titled, Letters from Christopher:
The Tragic Confessions of the Watts Family Murders.
Many shocking claims were made in the book, which Cadle reviewed during a November 2019
appearance on Dr. Oz, where she alleged Chris confessed to smothering his daughters before
killing Shanann Watts.
And then after Chris murdered Shanann, Bella and Celeste Watts supposedly woke up.
This version of events contradicts Chris' claim to police that the only time he harmed
the girls was at the worksite where the bodies were found.
Additionally, Chris changed his story about acting on impulse.
In a letter to Cadle, he supposedly wrote:
"August 12th when I finished putting the girls to bed, I walked away and said, 'That's the
last time I'm going to be tucking my babies in."
Chillingly, the quote continues:
"I knew what was going to happen the day before."
Although the book is compelling, these revelations might be inaccurate.
Cadle's book, according to multiple reviews on Goodreads, was supposedly riddled with
grammatical errors and misinformation.
What's more?
Authorities haven't confirmed her findings.
After Shanann Watts and her daughters were reported missing, Chris Watts' secrets quickly
began to unravel.
And one of those secrets might have been what blew the case wide open, at least according
to Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke.
In an Investigation Discovery special about Chris' mistress coming forward with details
about their affair, Rourke said:
"Nichol Kessinger turned out to have information that I can best describe as being a bombshell."
Although this might seem obvious, it wasn't only telling because it showed Chris was seemingly
intent on starting a new life, it was big because it painted the picture of him as a
habitual liar.
And if Chris lied about Kessinger (he denied the infidelity to investigators at first),
then what else might he be hiding?
As it turns out, Chris was supposedly lying to Kessinger, too.
In police recordings from the same Investigation Discovery special, Kessinger said:
"He informed me that he did have two kids, that he was currently in the process of a
separation from his wife...As far as I knew, that was becoming pretty finalized."
Shanann Watts' family was under no obligation to speak out about their tragic losses, but
they bravely decided to share their story with Dr. Phil McGraw in March 2019.
A lot of revelations were made during the episode, including Shanann's mother, Sandy
Rzucek's, story about communicating with Shanann, Celeste, and Bella after their deaths.
On the Dr. Phil show, Sandy explained:
"I felt my daughter's spirit the moment she died."
She claimed she somehow knew that something had happened.
"I swear to God I knew.
I woke up Frankie, I woke up the whole house.
I said, 'Something's wrong with Shanann.'"
Not only that, but the bereaved mom said she spoke with Shanann directly.
"That night I was laying in bed, and I just felt a presence and I heard my daughter.
I felt her, and I heard her say, 'I love you mommy and I'm sorry.'
She told me she was at peace."
Bella, as Sandy recalled, came to her and happily said:
"I can go to Walt Disney World anytime I want.'
And I said, that's right, Bella."
Whether you believe Sandy's account or not, it's clear she loved her family dearly.
Our hearts go out to her and the rest of Shanann's loved ones.
In such a disturbing case as the Watts family murders, sometimes the horrific details can
overshadow the people who worked the case.
It was powerful when Frederick police Detective Dave Baumhover, the lead detective on the
Watts case, spoke to The Denver Post in August 2019 about struggling with post-traumatic
stress disorder.
He shared with the outlet:
"It's like when you're a kid and you go on the wrong carnival ride and all you want to
do is get off...But you can't.
You have no choice until the ride shuts off."
As Baumhover told the outlet, he stopped working in March 2019 after interviewing Chris Watts
in prison for his full confession.
It's unclear if he has since returned to law enforcement, but he sounded unsure about his
professional future in the candid conversation.
Detective Baumhover stated:
"I have a hard time dealing with the probability that my career is ended, and not the way that
I wanted it to...Some days you feel defeated."
Colorado Bureau of Investigation agent Tammy Lee had a similar reaction, once breaking
down sobbing in a hair salon.
Lee told The Denver Post about her pain, saying:
"I felt like I knew them...I've been to many homicides of children.
This one was different."
Baumhover and Lee, along with others, spoke out to draw awareness to mental health services
for law enforcement.
Many people were shocked when Chris Watts confessed to murdering his family on November
6, 2018, almost three months after he pleaded not guilty to the charges.
So, why did Chris finally admit to his alleged involvement in the slayings?
His plan of action reportedly shifted when prosecutors said they wouldn't seek the death
penalty if he confessed to the terrifying crimes.
Shanann Watts' mother reportedly approved the idea.
Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke shared that she said to him:
"He made the choice to take those lives, I do not want to be in the position of making
the choice to take his."
Chris reportedly knew the odds were against him if the case went to trial.
A source told People:
"There was physical evidence and his own words that would convict him...His story didn't
work.
He got angry."
The source also claimed that:
"He didn't want to plead guilty.
But he really had no choice, considering the evidence.
It took a little bit of time for him to come around, but he did."
Rourke expressed relief that Shanann's name was cleared in the murders of Bella and Celeste
Watts.
NBC News reported that Rourke stated:
"The spotlight that he tried to shine on Shanann falsely, incorrectly and, frankly, a flat-out
lie has been corrected."
He added,
"The spotlight shines directly where it belongs: on him."
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