BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — Wednesday marked day two in the murder trial of 65-year-old Chad Allen Reed, who is accused of killing a couple who was living in the second floor of a home he owned.
Investigators say Reed killed Joseph Soule, 34, and his girlfriend, Jaclyn Lepird, 31, after an altercation at their shared residence in October 2020.
The pair was living on the second floor of Reed's home at 203 Post Avenue, while he lived on the first floor.
Reed faces two counts of open murder, as well as charges related to the use of a firearm.
Soule and Lepird were initially reported as missing persons by a friend, before police say Reed confessed to killing the couple.
The 65-year-old landlord allegedly told detectives that he shot Soule in self-defense after he pulled a knife on him.
After he shot Soule, he claimed that Lepird tried running out of their house, allegedly admitting to shooting her as she tried to escape, and then beating and strangling her in the backyard.
Prosecutors continued the process of presenting their side of the case to jurors on Wednesday— revealing photos and videos taken as police investigated the couple's disappearance.
Images showed a disheveled home, with trash and dirty clothes scattered around.
Investigators took photos of the doors and their hinges throughout the home, to later analyze for any signs of a potential break in.
"And, did there appear to be any in this case?" a prosecuting attorney asked a detective on the stand, in regards to any signs of a break in.
"No, there did not," he replied.
They did find a number of small red drops on floors though, potential blood evidence.
A number of actual pieces of evidence were shown to jurors— a handgun, a small knife, a box of large black garbage bags and a metal pipe found in the home's backyard.
Investigators believe he left their bodies at the 203 Post property for several days before wrapping them up in plastic and placing them in the back of his truck.
As family members of Soule and Lepird began coming around the home, Reed allegedly decided to move the truck in which they were hidden.
Reed is alleged to have then driven the truck into a nearby abandoned garage, to keep it away from search crews.
An investigator testified about the moment they found the couple's bodies in the back of Reed's truck, tucked inside the garage.
"In the bed of the truck, there were two plastic garbage cans— large ones like you take to the curb. We emptied those," the investigator said.
They say they found several layers of branches, or leafy material, mixed in.
"As we kept going, we started seeing lumpy, or hump areas, covered by black plastic," he continued. "Then we got to an area where we saw what appeared to be human remains encased in plastic."
Reed's trial continues Thursday morning with more testimony.
