Overview of MURDERED: Patrick Shunn & Monique Patenaude
This Crime Junkie (Audiochuck) episode, hosted by Ashley Flowers, recounts the 2016 murders of Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude in Oso, Washington. Over a 100‑day investigation detectives combined traditional police work (witness interviews, search teams, helicopters, cadaver dogs) with modern digital forensics (cell‑phone pings, health‑app and location data, CCTV) to identify suspects, recover the victims’ bodies, and secure convictions. Two central themes the episode emphasizes: details matter, and the truth never dies.
Key facts & timeline
- Victims: Patrick and Monique — a couple living near the Oso landslide area; loved animals, hobby farm, met at Burning Man.
- Missing: Last normal activity April 11, 2016; phones stopped transmitting at ~8:32 a.m. on April 12.
- Day 1–3 (April 12–14): Family/friends report them missing; patrol welfare check; expedited cell‑data request shows phones moved up an old logging road at ~3:26 a.m. on April 12; read receipts show messages being opened before phones go dark.
- Day 3–4: Helicopter and ground search locate Patrick’s Land Rover and Monique’s Jeep dumped down a cliff above the old Oso landslide; both cars had been shoved over the edge.
- Day 4–5: Forensic processing finds blood, rope, tarps, shell casings, shopping receipts, and other items linking to victims’ last known errands. Neighbor John Reed emerges as a primary suspect due to an ongoing land/easement dispute.
- Day 5–35: Investigators collect video evidence, obtain warrants, and find matching items (tarps, 4x4 posts, shell casings) at John’s property and truck. John and his brother Tony flee to Arizona and then Mexico.
- Day 35 (May 16): Tony surrenders to U.S. authorities after negotiating that prosecutors won’t seek the death penalty; cooperates and confesses that John killed the couple and that Tony helped dispose of the bodies/cars.
- Day 41: Tony leads detectives to the grave site; bodies are recovered under an uprooted tree about a mile from the dumped cars; autopsies confirm gunshot deaths.
- Arrests/Charges: Tony charged with first‑degree murder (later reduced to assisting), John charged with murder; parents charged with rendering criminal assistance for aiding the escape. John is arrested in Mexico weeks later and extradited to Washington.
- Trial & verdict: Trial in spring 2018; John claims self‑defense but is convicted—aggravated first‑degree murder for Patrick and second‑degree murder for Monique. Sentenced and incarcerated; Tony and the parents served county jail time and have since been released.
Investigation — what led to the case being solved
- Digital forensics:
- Cell‑tower pings placed the couple and later John/Tony on the same logging road at specific times.
- Health‑app and phone home/button‑press data corroborated times the phones were last used and when they were later moved.
- Security camera footage from neighbors captured the victims’ cars going up the logging road at ~3:31 a.m. and John’s truck later with the same 4x4 post visible.
- Physical evidence:
- Cars: blood, rope, plastic sheeting, tarps, shell casings, owner’s items (wallet, receipts) matching last errands.
- At John’s property: matching tarps/plastic, shell casings, blood in bathtub, diesel‑soaked clothes in barrel, hidden bunkers, and 4x4 posts.
- Items recovered where Tony said they’d been discarded: phones soaked in mud, trail camera and computer in woods, and Patrick’s jacket found by a cadaver dog.
- Human evidence:
- Neighbor statements (sightings of John’s red truck, description of items in the bed).
- Tony’s conditional surrender and subsequent confession (admitted participation in moving cars and bodies; described sequence of events).
- Corroboration: Tony’s confession lines up with physical, digital, and CCTV evidence—enabling prosecutors to build a strong case.
Suspects, motives, and legal outcome
- Principal suspect: John Reed — neighbor with a bitter, escalating dispute over easement access and land issues following the Oso landslide (he had received FEMA buyout money and was restricted from accessing the property).
- Accomplice: Tony Reed (John’s brother) — initially fled but surrendered and cooperated; took plea/assistance charges.
- Parents (Clyde and Faye Reed): charged for helping the brothers financially/with escape.
- Motive: No clear financial gain, drugs, or sexual motive established. Investigators describe the crime as “atypical” and “disorganized”—likely the result of John’s personality, anger, and escalation of a bitter neighbor dispute.
- Verdict: John convicted (aggravated first‑degree murder for Patrick; second‑degree for Monique). Tony and parents served jail time but have been released.
Notable quotes & moments
- Episode theme (host): “Details matter, and the truth never dies.”
- Detective Fontenot on the moment evidence changed the case: once CCTV showed John’s truck on the same road with matching items — “the hunt…was on like Donkey Kong.”
- Investigative tactic: detectives used a staged arrangement of sticks and a tarp to distract news cameras from the body recovery site.
Impact on family & community
- Patrick and Monique were described as kind, animal‑loving, and integral to family life (stories of Monique cuddling chickens, Patrick as a father figure).
- Families found some closure in the couple being reunited in death and in the convictions, but acknowledged nothing replaces the loss.
- Family memorials: tattoos and other tributes (e.g., “truth never dies”) as lasting remembrances.
Main takeaways
- Meticulous attention to small details (trail cam SD cards, read receipts, health app data, one wrong cat bowl) can be pivotal.
- Combining old‑school policing (witness interviews, search teams, cadaver dogs) with modern digital forensics produces strong investigative outcomes.
- Neighbor disputes, even seemingly petty ones, can escalate unpredictably—there’s not always a conventional motive like money, drugs, or sex.
- Persistence in investigation and cross‑agency cooperation (local, federal, international) were critical to locating, prosecuting, and convicting the perpetrators over the course of 100 days.
Sources / where to learn more
- Episode notes and source material: CrimeJunkie.com
- Episode host: Ashley Flowers / Crime Junkie (Audiochuck)