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Tony Clyde Reed Surrenders After Being On The Run For Over A Month, Authorities Still Seeking Brother, John Blaine Reed

By John Houck
Published on: 10:45 PST, May 17, 2016

Tony Clyde Reed, one of two brothers wanted in connection with the disappearance of a Washington couple, gave himself up Monday night. John Blaine Reed is still on the loose and U.S. marshals are aggressively hunting for him.

Booked into a San Diego County jail, 49-year-old Tony Reed went on the run with his brother after Arlington, Washington, couple Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude were allegedly killed. According to Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Raymond Fleck, Reed surrendered just before 8 p.m. near the Mexican border. His bail has been set at $5 million.

“We’re definitely glad to have one [brother] in custody,” Snohomish County Sheriff’s office spokeswoman Shari Ireton said. “We’re hoping for more information about the bodies.”

Shunn and Patenaude were reported missing on April 12. Two days later, their empty vehicles were discovered crashed over an embankment in a remote, rugged area of Oso, Washington. No bodies have been found, yet authorities remain vigilant in the search for the missing couple.

Shunn went to work as usual on April 11 but failed to report the following day. His wife, Monique, was last seen on the afternoon of April 11. When friends and family got worried and suspicious, authorities were notified.

John Reed, 53, lived on the property next to the missing couple and neighbors told investigators there was an intense disagreement between the neighbors. Prior to their disappearance, the couple accused Reed of illegally squatting on the land, which supposedly belonged to Snohomish County. Police think the motivation behind the killings is linked to this argument as Reed had previously threatened violence against the two.

“Reed expressed in a serious tone that he was capable of killing people without any problems, he could shoot them and then ‘they’ would never be able to locate the bodies,” one neighbor told detectives.

The missing couple is presumed dead and police are fairly confident that the Reed brothers are somehow involved based on the evidence so far. Blood smears and other unnamed items found in the couple’s vehicles have led investigators to believe Shunn and Patenaude are the victims of foul play.

Investigators say there is video footage showing the brothers getting rid of the couple’s vehicles. A 9mm shell casing was discovered outside a locked gate between Reed’s property and the couple’s home.

Authorities officially charged the brothers with first-degree murder on April 19.

Just before going on the lam, John Reed tried to cash a $96,000 check written from his parents’ bank account. The bank was unwilling to cash such a large check but exchanged it for five smaller checks. Authorities have since frozen the account as they continue the investigation.

Detectives say the brothers took a red Volkswagen belonging to their parents and headed toward Mexico. The car was found in Phoenix, Arizona, where the pair managed to steal a different car. A road camera near Calexico, California, later spotted that car.

John Reed’s land has been thoroughly searched as well as septic systems, wells, and other areas of the missing couple’s property. A shotgun and an ATV allegedly left by Reed were found on another neighbor’s property. Investigators think the all-terrain vehicle was used when the brothers hid the bodies.

Tony Reed is no stranger to the police. From 1989 to 1991, he was arrested multiple times for various drug charges. He was also arrested for several misdemeanors, including attempting to flee police and assault, between 1994 and 2003.

Meanwhile, John Reed has had his share of run-ins with the cops. He has been cited on previous occasions for some minor violations, such as driving without a license and collecting wood without a permit. In the late 1990s, he was on probation for five years on charges related to eluding police in Whatcom County.

The Snohomish County Sheriff’s office is asking the public’s help in finding John Reed. Police suspect he is currently hiding somewhere in Mexico. Now that Tony Reed is in custody, they are just one step closer to finding out what happened to Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude.

[Photo by Snohomish County Sheriff Office via AP, File]

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