An Ohio mother and her husband were found dead in their home. Now, her ex-husband is charged with murder. Here’s what we know

By Amanda Musa, CNN

(CNN) — Years before Monique Tepe and her husband Spencer were gunned down in their Columbus, Ohio, home, the mother of two had a brief marriage to a doctor named Michael David McKee.

Now, nearly a decade after their divorce was finalized, McKee is in custody in Illinois after his arrest on two counts of murder in connection with the Tepes’ deaths, records show. Charges against him in Ohio were upgraded by Monday morning to premeditated, aggravated murder, records show.

The charges were upgraded because “detectives believe they met the elements for him to be charged with Aggravated Murder,” the Columbus Division of Police told CNN in an email. A spokesperson did not answer what specifically those elements were.

McKee waived his right to an extradition hearing during a court appearance Monday in a hearing that lasted just a few minutes. A public defender representing McKee requested a speedy return to Ohio to plead not guilty in the case.

McKee, who was brought into the courtroom handcuffed and wearing a yellow jumpsuit, did not speak other than to identify himself to the judge. At the end of the hearing, he and his lawyer talked quietly before shaking hands.

Monique, 39, and Spencer, 37 – whose loved ones say “shared a beautiful, strong and deeply happy relationship” – were memorialized Sunday during a joint celebration of life ceremony, according to an obituary. The Tepes were “warm and welcoming and handled each day with such enthusiasm,” Audrey Mackie, Spencer’s cousin, told CNN affiliate WLWT.

“They lived for their children. Their lives became about their children and sharing their children with all of us and just loving them,” Rob Misleh, Spencer’s brother-in-law, told WLWT.

Colleagues of Spencer, a respected dentist, had called 911 the morning of December 30 after he uncharacteristically didn’t show up to work.

The couple was found dead later that morning in the home where they lived with their two children, ages 4 and 1, just north of downtown Columbus. Police say the children were found in the home unharmed.

Here’s what we know about McKee and his marriage to Monique Tepe.

Who is Michael David McKee?

McKee, 39, is a physician and surgeon licensed in California and Illinois, according to medical licensing databases in those states.

Most recently, McKee was listed as a vascular surgeon at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford, Illinois.

“OSF is cooperating with authorities who will provide any further information,” an OSF spokesperson said in a statement to CNN on Sunday.

McKee also held a medical license in Nevada, which expired in June 2025. Records show no disciplinary history in any of the states where he has practiced medicine.

In 2005, McKee began medical school at Ohio State University and interned at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center starting in 2014, records show.

In 2020, he completed his residency at the Carilion Clinic-Virginia Tech Carilion Residency Program. Later that year, he began a fellowship in vascular surgery at the University of Maryland Medical Center, which he completed in 2022.

McKee’s marriage to Monique Tepe

Monique Tepe was 28 when she married McKee in August 2015, according to Franklin County, Ohio, court records, which do not indicate any major conflicts throughout the divorce proceedings.

The couple had no children. Their divorce was finalized about a month after it was filed by Tepe – who was using her maiden name of Sabaturski at the time – in June 2017, the court records show.

The couple was separated at the time of the filing, according to the records, with McKee living in Roanoke, Virginia, coinciding with his medical residency at Carilion Clinic.

Why is McKee a suspect?

Questions about how the killings unfolded and what motivated the attack intensified last week when Columbus police released surveillance footage showing “a person of interest” walking in the alley near the couple’s home in the Weinland Park neighborhood.

The video was taken during the timeframe investigators believe the couple was killed, police said at the time. They did not explain why they were seeking information about that person.

Columbus police have not said whether McKee is believed to be the person shown in the video. CNN has reached out to authorities for more information.

According to CNN affiliate WBNS, the video links McKee to a vehicle that detectives say arrived shortly before the shooting took place and left moments afterward.

Police later located the vehicle in Rockford, Illinois, where officers confirmed McKee was the registered owner, WBNS reported.

McKee was taken into custody “without incident” in Rockford on Saturday, according to Columbus police.

What happens next?

McKee is in custody in Winnebago County, Illinois, inmate records with the sheriff’s office show.

McKee’s public defender requested a speedy return to Ohio to plead not guilty in the case.

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CNN’s Holly Yan, Emma Tucker and Elise Hammond contributed to this report.