Man charged with murder of woman found dead in suitcase at Seattle homeless camp

SEATTLE- Investigators say a man killed a woman and stored her body in a suitcase in a building he built at a homeless encampment in Seattle.

Prosecutors have charged Steven Thanh Nguyen, 57, with second-degree murder in the killing of Shannon Marie Reeder, according to charging documents filed Wednesday in King County Superior Court.

“The defendant appears to have murdered the victim with an ax or other sharp object, hidden her body in a suitcase for weeks, and left the victim’s remains for a cleanup crew to bulldoze,” the senior prosecutor wrote Thomas O’Ban loading papers.

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Reeder’s body was found on September 27 when social workers and crews from the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) cleared a homeless encampment from a forest near the intersection of I-5 and I-90 in Seattle.

A worker noticed a strong odor in a building in the warehouse and investigated by removing a suitcase from under a bed.

“This social worker opened the suitcase, cut open the plastic packaging and discovered what appeared to be human hair,” a Washington State Patrol (WSP) arrest report states.

The King County Coroner’s Office took possession of the body and identified the woman as Reeder. A medical examiner estimated that Reeder’s body had been in the suitcase for weeks or months, adding that she had multiple broken bones throughout her body.

The autopsy also revealed that Reeder had multiple sharp force injuries to his head that “were consistent with a blow from a sharp ax or hatchet,” the report said.

Investigators found mail with Nguyen’s name in the building where Reeder’s body was found. Witnesses at the camp also told officers that Nguyen was known to walk around the camp with an ax or hatchet.

“Accordingly [witness]“Nguyen often exchanged drugs for other items,” the arrest report states. “[Witness] had been to Nguyen’s structure about a month ago to swap and he noticed that the bed had been raised off the ground on a podium structure. This was the time [witness] noticed a strong smell near Nguyen’s tent.”

On October 3, Seattle police arrested Nguyen on a Department of Corrections warrant and he was questioned about the discovery of Reeder’s body in his warehouse building.

“Nguyen advised that he built the structure from scratch approximately a year ago,” the report said. “Nguyen said he used an ax to build it. WSP investigators asked Nguyen about the strong smell coming from the tent. Nguyen stated he noticed it but believed the odor was coming from the makeshift toilet.”

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Nguyen denied owning the suitcase but admitted to knowing Reeder and having a close relationship with her.

“Nguyen eventually admitted that Reeder came to his tent sometime in July of this year,” the report said. “According to Nguyen, Reeder overdosed on fentanyl and died when the two smoked together. Nguyen became afraid and did not inform authorities. Instead, he placed her body in a sleeping bag and wrapped it in plastic before putting her in the suitcase. He then stored the suitcase in the wooden platform structure under his bed.”

Investigators questioned Nguyen about Reeder’s injuries and he claimed she fell and hit her head on rocks the day before the fentanyl overdose.

On October 8th, Dr. Nicole Yarid of the King County Medical Examiner’s Office determined that Reeder’s cause of death was multiple sharp and blunt force injuries and that the manner of death was homicide.

“Doctor Yarid further advised that Reeder’s injuries were not the result of a fall and impact of her head on rocks. “Doctor Yarid also mentioned that the injuries were not the usual injuries you see when someone tries to dismember a corpse (to put it in a suitcase or otherwise dispose of the body),” it said it in the report.

The following day, investigators went to the SCORE prison in Des Moines, where Nguyen was being held, and asked about the medical examiner’s findings. Nguyen indicated he wanted a lawyer and the interview ended, according to the report.

In 2022, Nguyen was convicted of assault after he held a gun to a woman’s head and pulled the trigger while demanding her to perform a sexual act. The gun did not fire and the woman was able to escape, according to charging documents.

Court records show Nguyen has more than 20 warrants for his arrest for failure to appear and failure to comply with court orders. Prosecutors noted that he also had a history of criminal convictions abroad.

Nguyen is being held on $2 million bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 30 for arraignment.