In the rural quiet of Arlington, Washington, a long-simmering dispute between neighbors escalated into a tragic and fatal encounter. Patrick Shunn, a 45-year-old White / Caucasian male, and his wife, Monique Patenaude, age 46, lived on a picturesque property near the North Fork Stillaguamish River. Their lives, however, were marred by an ongoing feud with their neighbor, John Reed, over access to his property via a shared driveway.
This conflict had festered for years, with a history of threats and arguments. The tension peaked after a landslide damaged Reed's property, leading him to accept a county buyout. Despite this, he continued to illegally squat on the land, a fact Patenaude had reported shortly before their disappearance.
On April 11, 2016, the acrimony turned deadly. Prosecutors believe John Reed first ambushed Monique Patenaude, shooting her three times as she returned home from running errands. Hours later, when Patrick Shunn arrived home from his job in Kirkland, he was shot in the back of the head, a fatal ambush that left him no chance to defend himself. The couple was reported missing the next day, sparking a wide-ranging search. Investigators soon found the couple's vehicles pushed down a steep, wooded embankment, with significant amounts of blood inside, confirming their darkest fears.
The investigation quickly zeroed in on John Reed and his brother, Tony Reed. The brothers had fled to Mexico immediately following the murders. Their parents were later charged for aiding their escape by providing a vehicle and financial assistance. The manhunt came to an end when Tony Reed surrendered at the U.S.-Mexico border in May 2016. As part of a plea deal, he admitted to helping his brother bury the bodies and led detectives to a remote, shallow grave in the woods where the couple had been laid to rest. John Reed was captured in Mexico two months later and extradited to the United States to face justice.
During his trial, John Reed claimed he acted in self-defense, a story the jury ultimately rejected. In May 2018, he was found guilty of aggravated first-degree murder in the death of Patrick Shunn and second-degree murder for the killing of Monique Patenaude. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. For his cooperation, Tony Reed pleaded guilty to rendering criminal assistance and received a 14-month jail sentence. The brutal end to the lives of Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude served as a grim conclusion to a years-long neighborhood dispute.
