From a happy pregnancy announcement to a shallow grave: The full timeline of the Chris Watts murder case

Ashley CollmanOct 11, 2020, 21:03 IST

A composite image of Chris Watts in court, and a photo of his family: wife Shanann and daughters Bella and Celeste.AP/AP

In November 19, 2018, Chris Watts received three consecutive life sentences for the August 2018 deaths of his pregnant wife, Shanann Watts, and their daughters, Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3.
That summer, Chris had gone from a loving husband to a cheater to a killer.
This is the full timeline of his murder case, complete with phone records, texts, photos, and police records.

Editor's Note: Some readers may find details in this story disturbing.

On August 13, 2018, missing-person posters were showing the faces of pregnant Shanann Watts and her two daughters, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste, after they suddenly disappeared from their home in Frederick, Colorado.

At first, Watts' husband, Chris Watts, agreed to TV interviews, where he appeared torn up over their disappearance and begged for their safe return.

Two days later, he was arrested in connection with their deaths.

On social media, the couple seemed like they had a perfect marriage. But Chris had been secretly seeing a coworker, telling her that he and his wife were in the process of separating.

Over the summer, Shanann noticed that Chris was growing increasingly distant, and desperately tried to save their relationship.

When she returned from a business trip on the morning of August 13, 2018, she and Chris got into a fight, which ended with Shanann — who was 15 weeks pregnant — being strangled, and their two daughters smothered, to death.

Despite Chris's waning affections, nothing seems to explain why he killed his family. This is the full timeline of the grisly case.

June 11, 2018: Shanann records videos of her surprising her husband with the news that she's pregnant with their third child.

9News

June 14, 2018: Shanann records a video of Bella, 4, singing a song about how much she loves her dad.

YouTube/News Leak Replacement

June 14, 2018: Chris enters coworker Nichol Kessinger's contact information into his phone. Kessinger would later become his mistress.

A picture of Nichol Kessinger and Chris Watts found on Watts' phone. Weld County DA

June 17, 2018: Some time around this date Chris tells Kessinger he is married and has kids, but is in the process of separating, Kessinger later told police. On Father's Day, Shanann writes a tribute to her husband on Facebook.

Above, a photo that was taken just a few days before Shanann, her unborn baby and two daughters were killed. Weld County DA

June 17, 2018: Some time around this date Chris tells Kessinger he is married and has kids, but is in the process of separating, Kessinger later told police. On Father's Day, Shanann writes a tribute to her husband on Facebook.

June 19, 2018: Shanann shares a picture from her first ultrasound on Facebook, adding that her husband is the "best dad us girls could ask for."

An ultrasound image of the Watts' unborn son. Weld County DA

June 27, 2018: Shanann takes Bella and Celeste to North Carolina for a five-week vacation, while her husband stays at home and works.

From left to right: Celeste, Shanann, and Bella Watts. Shanann Watts/Facebook

July 4, 2018: Kessinger goes to Chris' house for the first time to "set up his diet and weight loss/exercise goals," as she later told police.

The Watts' house in Frederick, Colorado. Denver 7

July 7, 2018: A first phone call is logged between Chris and Kessinger.

Watts and Kessinger in July. Weld County DA

July 10, 2018: Signs of tension begin to show in the Watts' marriage, according to their text messages:

A transcription of the Watts' text-message exchanges on July 10, according the official review of their phone data. Weld County DA

July 14, 2018: Chris and Kessinger go on a date to a car museum. That afternoon, Shanann makes four calls to her husband, which all went unanswered.

The Shelby American Collection in Boulder, Colarado, which Watts and Kessinger visited. Shelby American Collection/Facebook

July 18, 2018: Kessinger sends Chris seminude photos of herself, which he stores on a secret calculator app on his phone.

One of the pictures of Kessinger found on Watts' phone. Weld County DA

July 28, 2018: Chris and Kessinger visit the Great Sand Dunes National Park and spend the night at a nearby campground.

The two went sandboarding during their two-day trip. Weld County DA

July 30: Chris gives Kessinger a love letter before leaving town to join his family on their summer vacation.

Weld County DA

The inside of the letter contains lyrics to the song "Down to Earth" by the band Through the Roots.

Weld County DA

July 31, 2018: Chris flies to North Carolina for the final week of his family's vacation. His and Shanann's reunion does not appear to be happy, according to a copy of a text Shanann sent to Chris, which she later forwarded to a friend.

Weld County DA

July 31, 2018: Chris flies to North Carolina for the final week of his family's vacation. His and Shanann's reunion does not appear to be happy, according to a copy of a text Shanann sent to Chris, which she later forwarded to a friend.

August 4, 2018, 12:45 a.m.: Shanann sends her husband a long text message accusing him of failing to stand up for her after his parents exposed their daughter Celeste to nuts, which she was allergic to.

Weld County DA

August 4, 2018, 12:45 a.m.: Shanann sends her husband a long text message accusing him of failing to stand up for her after his parents exposed their daughter Celeste to nuts, which she was allergic to.

Later that day, Shanann appears to have had a fight with her in-laws, which prompted them to skip Celeste's birthday party that summer. Here are texts she exchanged with a friend at the time:

Weld County DA

Later that day, Shanann appears to have had a fight with her in-laws, which prompted them to skip Celeste's birthday party that summer. Here are texts she exchanged with a friend at the time:

August 4, 2018: While Chris is away, Kessinger searches for wedding dresses on the internet for over two hours, according to a review of her cellphone data.

Chris Watts and Kessinger in July. Weld County DA

August 7, 2018: Shanann confides in friends about her problems with her husband.

Weld County DA

August 9, 2018: Shanann tells a friend that Chris Watts went to her ultrasound but was cold to her, so she decided to cancel the baby's gender-reveal party.

Weld County DA

August 9, 2018: Shanann leaves for a business trip to Arizona. On the way there, she tells a friend that she had her "best talk yet" with Chris the night before.

Weld County DA

August 9, 2018: Shanann texts a friend a handwritten letter she drafted to give to her husband, in which she says she doesn't know how they "fell out of compatibility," quoting him.

Weld County DA

August 9, 2018: Shanann texts a friend a handwritten letter she drafted to give to her husband, in which she says she doesn't know how they "fell out of compatibility," quoting him.

August 11, 2018: Chris hires a babysitter, saying he's going to a Colorado Rockies game with his coworkers. In fact, he is taking Kessinger on a date to a sports bar in Erie, Colorado.

The Lazy Dog Sports Bar and Grill in Erie, Colorado. Google Streetview

August 11, 2018: Chris hires a babysitter, saying he's going to a Colorado Rockies game with his coworkers. In fact, he is taking Kessinger on a date to a sports bar in Erie, Colorado.

August 12, 2018: Shanann sends a friend a draft of a speech she plans to give to her husband when she returns to Colorado the next day.

From the official review of Shanann Watts' cellphone data. Weld County DA

August 13, 2018, 1:48 a.m.: A neighbor's surveillance camera captures Shanann returning home from her business trip.

CBS Denver

Later that morning, Chris and Shanann get into an argument when he wakes up for work, according to his testimony. He told investigators his wife accused him of cheating, he "snapped," and then he strangled her to death.

Chris and Shanann. Facebook/Shanann Watts

Later that morning, Chris and Shanann get into an argument when he wakes up for work, according to his testimony. He told investigators his wife accused him of cheating, he "snapped," and then he strangled her to death.

According to Chris, the noise of the fight wakes Bella up, and she enters the bedroom and asks: "What's wrong with Mommy?"

An investigator holds up the bed sheet that Shanann was wrapped in when she was buried. YouTube/The Sun

According to Chris, Bella watches as he wraps his wife's body in a sheet and drags it out to his truck.

August 13, 2018, 5:27 a.m.: Surveillance footage shows Watts loading up his work truck and leaving home. Chris later tells investigators both girls sat on the bench seat of his truck as he drove out to an oil site where he works to dump Shanann's body.

The red circle shows Chris Watts by his work truck. YouTube/CBS Denver

August 13, 2018, 5:27 a.m.: Surveillance footage shows Watts loading up his work truck and leaving home. Chris later tells investigators both girls sat on the bench seat of his truck as he drove out to an oil site where he works to dump Shanann's body.

At the oil fields, Chris smothers his daughters with a blanket, before dropping their bodies into two separate oil tanks.

Investigators seen near the oil wells where Bella and Celeste's bodies were hidden. 9 News

August 13, 2018, 10:10 a.m.: After disposing of the bodies of his wife and daughters, Chris looks up the lyrics to a Metallica song, "Battery," which has a line: "Cannot kill the family."

Metallica performing the song in Pasadena, California, in 2017. YouTube/MetallicaTV

August 13, 2018, 10:10 a.m.: After disposing of the bodies of his wife and daughters, Chris looks up the lyrics to a Metallica song, "Battery," which has a line: "Cannot kill the family."

August 13, 2018, 12:27 p.m.: The Watts' realtor texts the couple, and Chris chats with her about the current state of their home and what they're looking for in a new house.

Weld County DA

August 13, 2018, 12:27 p.m.: The Watts' realtor texts the couple, and Chris chats with her about the current state of their home and what they're looking for in a new house.

At one point the realtor questions why Shanann hasn't weighed in on their conversation. "She hasn't been around all day," Chris responds. "It's very odd."

Weld County DA

August 13, 2018, 1:40 p.m.: Shanann's friend Nickole Atkinson, left, reports her missing when she can't get ahold of her.

Weld County DA

After looking through the house, a neighbor invites Chris and a police officer to his property to review his home-surveillance footage, which disproves Chris' story that his wife left with the girls while he was at work.

An officer's body camera captures Chris Watts' reaction as his alibi falls apart. Weld County DA

After looking through the house, a neighbor invites Chris and a police officer to his property to review his home-surveillance footage, which disproves Chris' story that his wife left with the girls while he was at work.

August 14, 2018, in the afternoon: Chris appears on Denver 7 to talk about his wife and daughters' disappearance.

YouTube/Denver7

August 15, 2018, in the evening: After police discover Chris Watts has a mistress and he fails a lie detector test, he admits to strangling his wife and burying her in a shallow grave at an oil site.

An image of Chris Watts (right) confessing to killing his wife to his father (left).. The Denver Post

August 15, 2018, in the evening: After police discover Chris Watts has a mistress and he fails a lie detector test, he admits to strangling his wife and burying her in a shallow grave at an oil site.

August 15, 2018, 11:30 p.m.: Chris Watts is arrested on suspicion of three first-degree-murder charges and three charges of tampering with a deceased human body.

Weld County DA

August 16, 2018, in the afternoon: Shanann Watts' body is discovered in a shallow grave near this oil site. The bodies of the girls are found in the two oil tanks.

Weld County DA

August 21, 2018: Shanann's family appears in court as Chris is arraigned.

Shanann Watts' father, Frank Rzucek, cries during the court hearing as his son, Frankie, comforts him. RJ Sangosti - Pool/Getty Images

November 6, 2018: Chris Watts pleads guilty to all nine counts against him.

A Polaroid picture of Chris Watts in jail in October 2018. Weld County DA

November 15, 2018: Kessinger speaks out in an interview with The Denver Post.

Kessinger. RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post via Getty Images

November 19, 2018: Chris is sentenced to three consecutive life sentences, without the possibility of parole.

RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post via Getty Images

February 18, 2019: Chris speaks to three investigators at the federal prison where he is serving his sentence, and finally tells them the whole story of how he killed his wife and kids.

This photo was taken of Watts on the day he was interviewed in February 2019. Colorado Bureau of Investigation

February 18, 2019: Chris speaks to three investigators at the federal prison where he is serving his sentence, and finally tells them the whole story of how he killed his wife and kids.

September 30, 2020: Netflix releases a documentary on the case called "American Murder: The Family Next Door."

The documentary includes family videos, including from the couple's wedding. YouTube/Netflix

October 6, 2020: People magazine reports that Watts has received an influx of letters from women since the Netflix documentary came out.

The Dodge Correctional Facility, where Watts is currently serving out his sentence, is seen in 2018. TMJ4

October 8, 2020: Meanwhile, Chris Watts' parents, Ronnie and Cindy Watts, tells The Sun that they still love their son despite what he did.

Ronnie and Cindy Watts are seen in a 2018 interview with Denver 7. YouTube/Denver 7

Bleak photo of a herd of elephants eating garbage on a giant dump tells a story of our times

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From a happy pregnancy announcement to a shallow grave: The full timeline of the Chris Watts murder case

June 11, 2018: Shanann records videos of her surprising her husband with the news that she's pregnant with their third child.

June 14, 2018: Shanann records a video of Bella, 4, singing a song about how much she loves her dad.

June 14, 2018: Chris enters coworker Nichol Kessinger's contact information into his phone. Kessinger would later become his mistress.

June 17, 2018: Some time around this date Chris tells Kessinger he is married and has kids, but is in the process of separating, Kessinger later told police. On Father's Day, Shanann writes a tribute to her husband on Facebook.

June 19, 2018: Shanann shares a picture from her first ultrasound on Facebook, adding that her husband is the "best dad us girls could ask for."

June 27, 2018: Shanann takes Bella and Celeste to North Carolina for a five-week vacation, while her husband stays at home and works.

July 4, 2018: Kessinger goes to Chris' house for the first time to "set up his diet and weight loss/exercise goals," as she later told police.

July 7, 2018: A first phone call is logged between Chris and Kessinger.

July 10, 2018: Signs of tension begin to show in the Watts' marriage, according to their text messages:

July 14, 2018: Chris and Kessinger go on a date to a car museum. That afternoon, Shanann makes four calls to her husband, which all went unanswered.

July 18, 2018: Kessinger sends Chris seminude photos of herself, which he stores on a secret calculator app on his phone.

July 28, 2018: Chris and Kessinger visit the Great Sand Dunes National Park and spend the night at a nearby campground.

July 30: Chris gives Kessinger a love letter before leaving town to join his family on their summer vacation.

The inside of the letter contains lyrics to the song "Down to Earth" by the band Through the Roots.

July 31, 2018: Chris flies to North Carolina for the final week of his family's vacation. His and Shanann's reunion does not appear to be happy, according to a copy of a text Shanann sent to Chris, which she later forwarded to a friend.

August 4, 2018, 12:45 a.m.: Shanann sends her husband a long text message accusing him of failing to stand up for her after his parents exposed their daughter Celeste to nuts, which she was allergic to.

Later that day, Shanann appears to have had a fight with her in-laws, which prompted them to skip Celeste's birthday party that summer. Here are texts she exchanged with a friend at the time:

August 4, 2018: While Chris is away, Kessinger searches for wedding dresses on the internet for over two hours, according to a review of her cellphone data.

August 7, 2018: Shanann confides in friends about her problems with her husband.

August 9, 2018: Shanann tells a friend that Chris Watts went to her ultrasound but was cold to her, so she decided to cancel the baby's gender-reveal party.

August 9, 2018: Shanann leaves for a business trip to Arizona. On the way there, she tells a friend that she had her "best talk yet" with Chris the night before.

August 9, 2018: Shanann texts a friend a handwritten letter she drafted to give to her husband, in which she says she doesn't know how they "fell out of compatibility," quoting him.

August 11, 2018: Chris hires a babysitter, saying he's going to a Colorado Rockies game with his coworkers. In fact, he is taking Kessinger on a date to a sports bar in Erie, Colorado.

August 12, 2018: Shanann sends a friend a draft of a speech she plans to give to her husband when she returns to Colorado the next day.

August 13, 2018, 1:48 a.m.: A neighbor's surveillance camera captures Shanann returning home from her business trip.

Later that morning, Chris and Shanann get into an argument when he wakes up for work, according to his testimony. He told investigators his wife accused him of cheating, he "snapped," and then he strangled her to death.

According to Chris, the noise of the fight wakes Bella up, and she enters the bedroom and asks: "What's wrong with Mommy?"

According to Chris, Bella watches as he wraps his wife's body in a sheet and drags it out to his truck.

August 13, 2018, 5:27 a.m.: Surveillance footage shows Watts loading up his work truck and leaving home. Chris later tells investigators both girls sat on the bench seat of his truck as he drove out to an oil site where he works to dump Shanann's body.

At the oil fields, Chris smothers his daughters with a blanket, before dropping their bodies into two separate oil tanks.

August 13, 2018, 10:10 a.m.: After disposing of the bodies of his wife and daughters, Chris looks up the lyrics to a Metallica song, "Battery," which has a line: "Cannot kill the family."

August 13, 2018, 12:27 p.m.: The Watts' realtor texts the couple, and Chris chats with her about the current state of their home and what they're looking for in a new house.

At one point the realtor questions why Shanann hasn't weighed in on their conversation. "She hasn't been around all day," Chris responds. "It's very odd."

August 13, 2018, 1:40 p.m.: Shanann's friend Nickole Atkinson, left, reports her missing when she can't get ahold of her.

After looking through the house, a neighbor invites Chris and a police officer to his property to review his home-surveillance footage, which disproves Chris' story that his wife left with the girls while he was at work.

August 14, 2018, in the afternoon: Chris appears on Denver 7 to talk about his wife and daughters' disappearance.

August 15, 2018, in the evening: After police discover Chris Watts has a mistress and he fails a lie detector test, he admits to strangling his wife and burying her in a shallow grave at an oil site.

August 15, 2018, 11:30 p.m.: Chris Watts is arrested on suspicion of three first-degree-murder charges and three charges of tampering with a deceased human body.

August 16, 2018, in the afternoon: Shanann Watts' body is discovered in a shallow grave near this oil site. The bodies of the girls are found in the two oil tanks.

August 21, 2018: Shanann's family appears in court as Chris is arraigned.

November 6, 2018: Chris Watts pleads guilty to all nine counts against him.

November 15, 2018: Kessinger speaks out in an interview with The Denver Post.

November 19, 2018: Chris is sentenced to three consecutive life sentences, without the possibility of parole.

February 18, 2019: Chris speaks to three investigators at the federal prison where he is serving his sentence, and finally tells them the whole story of how he killed his wife and kids.

September 30, 2020: Netflix releases a documentary on the case called "American Murder: The Family Next Door."

October 6, 2020: People magazine reports that Watts has received an influx of letters from women since the Netflix documentary came out.

October 8, 2020: Meanwhile, Chris Watts' parents, Ronnie and Cindy Watts, tells The Sun that they still love their son despite what he did.