Investigators say murder suspect Tony Reed is cooperating in search for couple's bodies

EVERETT, Wash. -- Tony Reed, charged with aggravated murder in the deaths of an Arlington couple last month, decided to surrender because "he wants people to know that he is not guilty," his lawyer said Monday.

“He wanted to come up and face the charges and thought it was the right thing to do,” said attorney James Kirkham.

Tony Reed is in the Snohomish County Jail. He is accused of helping his older brother, John Reed, kill an Arlington married couple, Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude sometime around April 11.  John Reed, who had lived near the couple and had a property dispute with them, is still at large and believed to still be in Mexico.

Kirkham said he has known Tony Reed for years and ultimately became the one to help him surrender at the Mexico-California border last week.

“He contacted me prior to turning himself in and I was able to facilitate that, working with local detectives to ensure he was turned in safely,” said Kirkham.

Reed was flown from San Diego to Washington state and booked into the Snohomish County Jail early Saturday.

Since his arrival back in  Snohomish County, investigators said he’s cooperating to help locate the bodies of Patrick and Monique.

“He’s been helping detectives, yes, but we still have not recovered their bodies so that’s something we hope will happen very soon,” said Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Shari Ireton. “The chances of being able to get to their exact location is much better than it was a week ago.”

Kirkham said with Tony in jail and big brother John still on the run, the Reed family is hurting.

“They’ve got one son that everyone in the world is looking for, and they have another who is currently in Corrections, faced with aggravated murder charges,” said Kirkham.

But investigators say Patrick and Monique’s families are hurting, too, and they want answers.

“Our number one priority from the beginning has been to try and find Patrick and Monique,” said Ireton. “A close second is to get John Reed in custody because we definitely believe he was involved in their deaths.”

Tony Reed is expected to make his first appearance in Snohomish County Superior Court at 1 p.m. Tuesday.