The quiet of a Columbus, Ohio neighborhood shattered on the morning of December 30th. Spencer Tepe, a 37-year-old dentist, failed to arrive at work, prompting a welfare check that revealed a horrific scene: Spencer and his wife, Monique Tepe, 39, were found dead from gunshot wounds within their Weinland Park home.
Investigators quickly focused on Monique’s ex-husband, Michael David McKee, a 39-year-old vascular surgeon residing in Chicago. The couple had divorced in 2017, a separation initially described as amicable, following a marriage that began in 2015. McKee had relocated to Virginia by the time the divorce was finalized, seemingly distancing himself from the area.
The Tepe’s were on the cusp of a significant milestone – their fifth wedding anniversary. A family member shared the devastating news, highlighting the joy stolen from their lives. Two young children, Monique’s from her marriage to Spencer, were thankfully unharmed and present at the scene when police arrived.
Police meticulously pieced together the timeline, utilizing neighborhood surveillance footage. A vehicle matching McKee’s was captured arriving near the Tepe residence shortly before the estimated time of the murders and departing immediately afterward. This crucial evidence fueled the search and ultimately led to a warrant for his arrest.
McKee was apprehended in Rockford, Illinois, near his workplace, and booked into the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office on Saturday. He now faces two counts of murder in Franklin County, Ohio. Authorities are preparing for his extradition to Ohio, with a court hearing scheduled for January 12th.
Surveillance footage further implicated McKee, showing an unidentified individual – later confirmed as him – walking in an alley near the Tepe home between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. on the night of the killings. This placed him squarely within the critical timeframe of the investigation.
Despite his successful career – holding active medical licenses in both Illinois and California, and a medical degree from Ohio State University – McKee is now accused of a brutal crime. He also maintains family ties to Zanesville, Ohio, a town east of Columbus. The motive behind the senseless violence remains unknown, leaving a community grappling with shock and grief.
