Chris Watts wanted another life, so he decided his wife and children shouldn't get to keep theirs.

 

Chris Watts Murdered His Pregnant Wife and Two Young Daughters, Then Tried to Build a New Life Without Them

On August 13, 2018, Christopher “Chris” Watts murdered his pregnant wife, Shanann Watts, 34, and their two daughters, Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3, in Frederick, Colorado.

Shanann was 15 weeks pregnant with their unborn son, Nico.

Watts strangled Shanann inside their home. He then transported her body and his daughters to an oil-storage site operated by his employer, Anadarko Petroleum.

There, Watts smothered Bella and Celeste.

He buried Shanann in a shallow grave and placed the bodies of his daughters inside separate crude-oil tanks.

When Shanann and the children were reported missing, Watts initially portrayed himself publicly as a worried husband and father. He gave television interviews asking for his family to come home safely.

Investigators quickly discovered that Watts had been living a double life. He was having an extramarital affair with a coworker and had been searching online for apartments and information related to separation.

Watts eventually confessed.

To avoid the death penalty, he pleaded guilty in November 2018 to nine criminal charges, including multiple counts of first-degree murder, unlawful termination of a pregnancy, and tampering with a deceased human body.

He was sentenced to five consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus additional prison time.

Watts is currently serving his sentence at the Dodge Correctional Institution in Wisconsin after being transferred from Colorado because of security concerns.

The case has generated years of documentaries, interviews, books, and fascination with Watts himself.

But he is not the person who deserves to remain at the center of this story.

Shanann was 34. Bella was four. Celeste was three. Nico had not even been born. Chris Watts wanted another life, so he decided his wife and children shouldn't get to keep theirs.