Chilling new surveillance footage has captured the moment killer dad Chris Watts confessed to his father that he strangled his pregnant wife to death.

In the footage released by Colorado Police, Watts, 33, can be seen leaning his head into his hands before quietly explaining to his father, Ronnie, how he killed his wife.

“I freaked out, you understand me,” Watts whispered.

“Oh my god,” his father gasped, dropping his head into his hands.

Watts told his father he was downstairs on the morning of August 13 when he heard a commotion. Upon returning upstairs, he said he found his wife, Shanann, smothering their daughters, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste.

Shortly before the confession, filmed in a small, white interview room on August 15, Watts failed a polygraph test and agents from the FBI and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation encouraged him to tell the truth about what happened to his family.

After confessing to his father, he repeated his confession to the agents who had been interviewing him for hours.

However, police later called that story a lie and alleged that Watts killed all three after the young father also admitted to having an affair with a co-worker.

Watts eventually pleaded guilty to their murders and a Weld County judge sentenced him to life in prison on November 19.

MURDERED AND DUMPED
Following Watts’ admission, further footage released by authorities and captured by Watts’ neighbour, showed the 33-year-old leaving his Colorado home after loading his truck with the bodies of his pregnant wife and two daughters.

The video was taken on the morning of August 13, at around 5:30am — a day after they were brutally murdered.

He drove them to an oil field managed by his company, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, and dumped his daughters in an oil tank and his wife in shallow dug-out grave.

He even text a co-worker, Kodi Roberts, to say he was going to go to the far-out oil field.

The day before, on August 12, Watts said he took his daughters home from a children’s birthday party, gave them both showers, fed them snacks and tucked them into bed, The Sun reports.

Hours later they were murdered, alongside their mum Shannan.

Shannan’s dad, Frank Rzucek, had spoken to his son-in-law and granddaughter Bella on Facetime that evening, telling police she was happily eating pizza.

Watts said Bella woke up twice in the night to ask when her mum was coming home.

The sister of the birthday boy whose party Bella and Celeste attended told police Watts had asked her to watch the girls a day before the party so he could go to a Colorado Rockies baseball game.

It later emerged he was visiting his mistress, Nichol Kessinger.

He set up the babysitter the night before by texting Ms Kessinger’s father: “Do you think McKenna is available to watch the girls for a few hours tomorrow night? I won a raffle at work for a Rockies game.

“lt’s with people I don’t know from work, but I haven’t been to a game in a while where the kids aren’t involved and only last an inning lol.”

Watts’ co-worker Mr Roberts told investigators it was “unusual” for Watts to text him on a weekend.

He also confirmed Watts arrived at the isolated oil site early and alone, and made regular trips to and from his vehicle.

He did not realise that moment earlier Watts had buried Shannan in a shallow grave, and dumped the two little girls in oil tanks.