Background: Spencer and Monique Tepe (Facebook). Inset: Michael McKee in court (Law&Crime Network).
The man suspected of killing his ex-wife and her new husband, an Ohio dentist, allegedly told the woman "he could kill her at any time."
Michael McKee, 39, was arrested earlier this month and charged with aggravated murder in connection with the double homicide of Monique Tepe, 39, and her husband Spencer Tepe, 37. The Tepes were found dead of gunshot wounds in their Columbus home on Dec. 30, 2025. Their two young children were still inside the house, unharmed. According to a newly released criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime, police spoke to friends of the Tepes after the gruesome discovery and learned that McKee, Monique Tepe's ex-husband, allegedly had a history of making violent threats against her.
Police said officers responded to the Tepes' home to conduct a welfare check. Spencer Tepe, a local dentist, had not shown up for work on the morning of Dec. 30, 2025, and did not call the office. Officers arrived at the home before 10 a.m. and found the couple deceased.
According to the complaint, friends of Monique Tepe told police that McKee, whom she divorced in 2017 after a seven-month marriage, was "abusive" toward her and made "numerous threats on her life." Specifically, Monique Tepe made allegations of "forced unwanted sex and strangulation" by McKee. Police said McKee told Monique Tepe that "he could kill her at any time and would find her and buy the house right next to her, that she will always be his wife."
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Through their investigation, police were able to identify a potential suspect on neighborhood surveillance camera as well as a vehicle that had "very distinct features." The vehicle, a silver SUV, was seen arriving in the Tepes' neighborhood just before the homicides and leaving "shortly after." Investigators said the SUV was seen with stolen license plates from Ohio and Arizona.
Police said they were able to connect the SUV to McKee through his past and current addresses.
As detectives started tracking McKee's whereabouts, they determined that the same silver SUV was seen in the Tepes' neighborhood on Dec. 6, 2025. Police said he was reportedly not on the work schedule that day at the hospital in Chicago, where he was employed as a vascular surgeon.
On the same day, police said friends told them Monique and Spencer Tepe were at the Big Ten Championship in Indiana, along with several other couples. Friends of the Tepes said Monique Tepe went back to her hotel room early because "she was upset about something involving her ex-husband."
Police also tracked McKee's phone and determined that it had been left at the hospital, registering "no activity" for 17 hours from Dec. 29, 2025, until after noon on Dec. 30, 2025.
When police seized the SUV on Jan. 9, they observed "fresh scrape marks" on the window where they had previously seen a sticker in surveillance footage before the homicides.
McKee was arrested in Chicago on Jan. 10 and extradited to Ohio's Franklin County, where he is in custody without bond. He was charged with four counts of aggravated murder and one count of aggravated burglary. His attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf during his court appearance on Jan. 23.