The Frederick home of a man convicted of killing his pregnant wife and daughters is no longer slated for auction this fall. Instead, the sale of the former home of Christopher and Shanann Watts and their daughters has been moved to next year, according to online Weld County Public Trustee records.
The house at 2825 Saratoga Trail will be auctioned Jan. 8, for failure to pay principal and interest. The continuation marks the third since the original April 17 auction date, which was moved to Sept. 18, then Oct. 23 and finally, next year.
On Nov. 6, Christopher Watts pleaded guilty to five counts of first-degree murder, three counts of tampering with a corpse and unlawful termination of a pregnancy in connection with the August 2018 deaths of his pregnant wife, Shanann, 34, and their daughters, Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3. On Nov. 19, he was sentenced to life without parole for their deaths.
Online records show the home was purchased in 2013. The Weld County filing also indicates that Christopher Watts owes $349,938.09 on the five-bedroom, four-bath home.
Public Trustee Susie Velasquez said she couldn’t speak to why the auction date had been continued, emphasizing that the decision is up to the law firm, McCarthy & Holthus, LLP, which represents the lender JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.
When asked about the reason for the delay, David Owen, chief administrative officer for Mcarthy & Holthus LLP, said the company was “not at liberty to discuss pending litigation.” JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. did not respond to requests for comment.
Christopher Watts admitted to police that he killed his wife and smothered his daughters. Shanann Watts was buried in a shallow grave and the bodies of Celeste and Bella were dumped in oil tanks on an Anadarko Petroleum Co. site near Roggen. Chris Watts had worked for the oil company before his arrest.
Autopsy reports showed that Shanann Watts and her daughters died of asphyxiation.
Since the tragedy, the home, located in the Wyndham Hill neighborhood has sat vacant. Neighbors and people across the state brought stuffed animals and flowers to the home to pay tribute to Shanann Watts and Bella and Celeste.
A bidding amount will be announced two days prior to the sale date in January, according to Velasquez.
Christopher Watts is serving his life sentence in a Wisconsin prison.
