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Chris Watts ‘has twisted regret’ after killing wife and two kids
Home>News>US News
Published 12:57 26 May 2026 GMT+1

Chris Watts ‘has twisted regret’ after killing wife and two kids

His wife Shanann was 15 weeks pregnant when he horrifically murdered her, while their daughters were just three and four

Olivia Burke

Olivia Burke

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Colorado killer Chris Watts has reportedly been expressing regret about a request he made to his pregnant wife Shanann before he brutally murdered her and their two daughters.

The 41-year-old is said to have been musing over some of his past decisions, and there's apparently one which he has been particularly fixated on.

However, it's not the horrific slaying of his wife of six years and smothering of their innocent children in August 2018 that has supposedly been keeping him up at night.

Watts is currently locked up at the Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun, Wisconsin, where he is serving five life sentences without the possibility of parole.

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He dodged the death penalty after agreeing to plead guilty to all nine charges lodged against him - which included murder, tampering with deceased bodies and unlawful termination of a pregnancy.

Judge Marcelo Kopcow described Watts crimes as the 'most inhumane and vicious' that he had ever encountered.

He strangled 34-year-old Shanann, who was 15 weeks pregnant, with his bare hands before suffocating their two daughters Celeste, three, and Bella, four.

Watts buried his wife in a shallow grave close on a oil field, before dumping the little girls in oil tanks nearby.

Shanann and her two daughters were murdered in August 2018 (Facebook)
Shanann and her two daughters were murdered in August 2018 (Facebook)

He initially played the role of a panicked husband and father who had returned home to find his family had vanished and even gave TV interviews begging for his family's safe return.

But Watts twisted web of lives was eventually exposed and it emerged that he had been having an affair with one of his colleagues, Nichol Kessinger, who he hoped to start a new life with after the murders.

Watts claimed to have found God a few months after he was informed he would never step foot out of prison.

Since he has been incarcerated, he's had a number of pen pals and has made contact with a number of people on the outside world.

His former cell mate and other fellow inmates have also spoken out about what Watts was like behind bars.

According to reports, Watts has been vocal about his biggest regret - which is that he attempted to pressure Shanann into terminating the pregnancy after she informed him she was expecting.

"He wanted her to have an abortion," Miguel Canteros, who attended a prison Bible Study group with the killer last year, told the Daily Mail. "He said he really felt bad about that, asking her to get rid of the baby.

"He's really focused on the abortion. That's what he confesses about, that he was ungrateful for the gift of a new baby."

Watts, 41, has reportedly been telling people that his biggest regret is trying to pressure his pregnant wife into having an abortion (Colorado Dept. of Public Safety)
Watts, 41, has reportedly been telling people that his biggest regret is trying to pressure his pregnant wife into having an abortion (Colorado Dept. of Public Safety)

A woman who has exchanged letters with the inmate said he broached the same subject during their conversations too. She claims he wrote to her in November 2021 saying that he 'didn't want another child' at the time.

The 43-year-old, who wished to remain anonymous, also told the publication that Watts said to her: "I was selfish. I didn't want more responsibility. It was wrong of me to tell her to do that, because that's not what she wanted."

Shanann shared her concerns about Watts' reluctance to have another kid in messages sent to her best pal just days before her husband horrifically took her life.

"Chris told me last night he's scared to death about this third baby and he's happy with just Bella and Celeste and doesn't want another baby," one text from the mum said.

"He said we're not compatible anymore. He refused to hug me after he said he will try to 'work it out'."

Another said: "I grabbed his hand during ultrasound and he didn't grab back."

Shanann's family later revealed that she had intended to name her unborn son Nico Lee, according to CNN.

A forensic psychology expert recently spoke to LADbible about the disturbing reasons behind why he keeps photos of Shanann, Celeste and Bella on the wall in his prison cell.

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Shanann Watts

Topics: US News, Crime, True Crime, Prison

Olivia Burke
Olivia Burke

Olivia is a journalist at LADbible Group with more than five years of experience and has worked for a number of top publishers, including News UK. She also enjoys writing food reviews (as well as the eating part). She is a stereotypical reality TV addict, but still finds time for a serious documentary.

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@livburke_

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