Police have arrested the ex-husband of a woman found slain alongside her husband inside their Columbus home late last month, citing vehicle tracking data as the key break in the investigation.
Michael David McKee, 39, was taken into custody on Saturday, Jan. 10, in Rockford, Illinois. He faces two counts of murder in connection with the deaths of Monique Tepe, 39, and Spencer Tepe, 37.
The couple was discovered dead in their home on Dec. 30 after a welfare check that revealed a grim scene. Colleagues of Spencer, a local dentist, became alarmed when he failed to arrive for work. When officers responded to the residence, they could hear the couple’s two young children, ages 1 and 4, crying inside.
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According to court documents, the investigation turned toward McKee after detectives analyzed neighborhood surveillance footage. Investigators identified a vehicle belonging to McKee arriving in the area “just prior to the homicides” and departing shortly after.
Police tracked the vehicle to Rockford, Illinois, where they gathered evidence confirming McKee had maintained possession of the car throughout the timeline of the murders.
The arrest comes just days after the Columbus Division of Police released grainy security footage showing a hooded figure walking calmly through a snowy alleyway near the Tepe home around the time of the killings.
While authorities have not explicitly confirmed whether the individual in the video is McKee, the timeline aligns with the newly released vehicle-tracking data.
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McKee was booked into the Winnebago County Jail shortly before noon on Saturday and is currently awaiting extradition to Franklin County, Ohio. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 12.
In the wake of the tragedy, family members have issued statements remembering Spencer and Monique for their kindness and their dedication to building a life “rooted in love.” The focus for the grieving family remains on the couple’s two surviving children.
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