Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Frederick Police Department
Topics: True crime, Netflix
Callum Jones
Topics: True crime, Netflix
The truly disturbing text convicted murderer Chris Watts sent to his mistress just hours after he murdered his family has resurfaced, leaving many horrified all over again.
Back in 2018, Watts appeared as a devastated father on TV appealing for help to help find his pregnant wife and two daughters, who had suddenly gone missing.
In these TV interviews, Watts appeared to be in utter shock, but many could not have believed what he had actually done.
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As he genuinely seemed devastated as to where wife Shanann and daughters Bella and Cece had gone, it was actually all a calculated plan from the murderer.
Just days before the TV pleas, Watts strangled his 15-week pregnant wife to death before going on to brutally kill the couple's four-year-old and three-year-old daughters.
After that, Watts dumped his two daughters in a crude oil tank while his wife was dumped in a shallow grave.
Once the two children and Shanann were reported missing, police began a search for the trio but quickly became suspicious of the husband's strangely calm behaviour.
It took only a matter of days for police to find their bodies, with officials being certain Watts was in someway connected to their deaths.
Whether that was murdering them directly or at least having something to do with it, police had their suspicions so brought Watts in for questioning.
The killer was adamant at first he was not at all involved, but eventually confessed as part of a plea deal to escape the death penalty.
The killer avoided the death penalty and was ultimately sentenced to life imprisonment in November 2018.
With Shanann being pregnant with the couple's third child, it all looking like a perfect family life.
But as revealed in the Netflix documentary American Murder: The Family Next Door, cracks had started to appear before Watts killed his family.
Shanann had even told one of her friends: “He has changed. I don’t know who he is. He hasn’t touched me all week, kissed me, talked to me except for when I’m trying to figure out what is wrong.”
What had happened was Watts had started an affair behind his wife's back with colleague Nichol Kessinger, who believed his marriage was over.
It has been said Watts committed the murders so he could start a new life with Kessinger - although she had nothing to do with his crimes.
When Kessinger saw the news of Watts' family going missing, she immediately reached out to him.
"I kept asking him ‘What did you do, Chris?’ What did you do?’ I asked ‘were your family?'," she said.
Kessinger knew she had to end the relationship, so she sent the murderer one final text, saying: "If you did anything bad, you’re going to ruin your life and you’re going to ruin my life, I promise you that."
The reply written by Watts chillingly read: "I didn’t hurt my family, Nicky."