MURDERED: Patrick Shunn & Monique Patenaude
When a couple from Oso, Washington, is discovered missing, it doesn’t take long for detectives to develop a prime suspect. But solving the case, finding their bodies and capturing the killer took approximately 100 days, using a combination of old-school investigative methods and modern forensic tools.
Click HERE to view the footage from SnoHawk 1’s camera, courtesy of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.
Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn.
Courtesy: Vi Gallez
Patrick Shunn.
Courtesy: Eryn Leonard
Monique Patenaude.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Patrick and Monique’s dog, Cairo.
Courtesy: Eryn Leonard
Patrick’s Land Rover on the SnoHawk 1 footage.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Top: Patrick’s Land Rover. Bottom: Monique’s Jeep.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Items found in the back of Patrick’s vehicle.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Security footage of Monique in the McDonald’s drive-thru
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
John Reed.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Tony Reed.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
John’s red truck.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
John’s house and property.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
The recovery of Patrick and Monique’s phones.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn.
Courtesy: Eryn Leonard
Where Patrick and Monique’s bodies were recovered.
Courtesy: Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
Timeline:
Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude are last seen alive.
Friends and neighbors report Patrick and Monique missing; the couple’s phones stop transmitting around 8:32 a.m.
Neighbors report seeing John and Tony Reed leaving the couple’s property.
Detectives locate Patrick’s Land Rover and Monique’s Jeep down a ravine near the Oso landslide.
John and Tony Reed are identified as suspects and flee the state.
Tony Reed surrenders at the U.S.-Mexico border and agrees to cooperate in exchange for avoiding the death penalty.
Tony Reed confesses that John killed Patrick and Monique and details how the bodies and vehicles were disposed of.
Tony leads investigators to the burial site at the uprooted tree, where the bodies of Patrick and Monique are recovered.
John Reed is captured in Mexico, and extradited to the U.S. to stand trial.
John Reed goes on trial and claims self-defense.
John Reed is convicted of aggravated first-degree murder for Patrick and second-degree murder for Monique and is sentenced to prison.
Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude’s House
The approximate location of Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude’s residence where a confrontation with neighbor John Reed began.
Around the Oso Landslide Site
Approximate area where Patrick and Monique’s vehicles were found and where the bodies of Patrick and Monique were later recovered nearby.
Ellensburg, WA
Town where John and Tony Reed hid out at their parents’ home.
Puerto Peñasco, Sonora, Mexico
The city where John Reed was located and arrested.
U.S.–Mexico Border, San Diego, CA
Location where Tony Reed surrendered after spending several weeks in Mexico with his brother John.
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Episode Source Material
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Original reporting by Emily Mieure
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Materials and sources provided by Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office
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The Seattle Times (Seattle, WA): Mexican agents hunting fugitives in Arlington slayings: ‘It’s only going to be a few days’, by Lewis Kamb. Published April 28, 2016. Accessed August 12, 2025. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/arlington-killing-fugitives-may-find-no-refuge-in-mexico-statistics-suggest/
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Oregon Live (Portland, OR): Murder charges dropped against brother in Washington couple killings, by Associated Press. Published June 14, 2016. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2016/06/charges_dropped_against_brothe.html
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The Seattle Times (Seattle, WA): Parents of suspect in slaying of Arlington couple arrested; murder charges against 2nd son dropped, by Sara Jean Green. Published June 14, 2016. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/parents-of-arlington-murder-suspects-arrested-for-allegedly-helping-sons-flee/
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Herald Net (Everett, WA): Jury finds John Reed guilty in murders of his Oso neighbors, by Rikki King and Stephanie Davey. Published May 30, 2018. Accessed August 13, 2025. https://www.heraldnet.com/news/jury-finds-john-reed-guilty-in-murders-of-his-oso-neighbors/
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