In a chilling escalation that’s left Columbus reeling, court documents and newly unsealed affidavits reveal a terrifying pattern: the accused killer in the brutal double murder of beloved dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife Monique Tepe didn’t strike out of the blue—he allegedly scoped out their home weeks in advance, attempting a break-in on December 6, 2025, only to flee when he found the couple absent at a Big Ten Championship football game.

Surveillance footage from the upscale Weinland Park neighborhood captured the suspect—identified as Michael David McKee, 39, Monique’s ex-husband and a surgeon from the Chicago area—entering the “curtilage” of the property (the immediate surroundings, including driveway and yard) while Spencer and Monique were hundreds of miles away in Indiana cheering for their teams with friends. The video shows the figure lingering, possibly testing doors or peering inside, before abruptly leaving after a few hours. No entry into the house itself occurred that night, but investigators now believe this was a dry run—a failed assassination attempt thwarted only by the couple’s absence.

Then came the horror on December 31, 2025: the bodies of Spencer, 37, and Monique, 39, were discovered shot to death in their home around 10 a.m. on December 30 (with the killings believed to have occurred between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. on the 30th, just days after their fifth wedding anniversary). Their two young children—miraculously unharmed—were found inside, one reportedly sobbing near the carnage. A friend performing a wellness check spotted Spencer’s body beside the bed in a pool of blood and frantically called 911: “There’s a body… he’s laying next to his bed in this blood.”

McKee, arrested in the Chicago suburbs after a 10-day manhunt, now faces four counts of aggravated murder and aggravated burglary in Franklin County. Prosecutors allege he drove nearly 900 miles round-trip from Rockford, Illinois, in under 17 hours—leaving his phone at work on December 29 to avoid tracking—arriving in Columbus just before the slayings and fleeing shortly after. Neighborhood surveillance nailed him: a silver SUV (sporting a stolen Ohio plate) was spotted arriving and departing the crime scene window. The vehicle was later recovered in Illinois, with evidence linking McKee to it before and after the killings.

The prior intrusion adds a layer of premeditated terror. Sources say McKee had a history of threats against Monique, reportedly telling her years earlier that he could “kill her at any time,” that he would “always find her,” and that “she will always be his wife.” Friends described him as “controlling” and “emotionally abusive,” devastated when Monique moved on and built a joyful life with Spencer—a charismatic, bilingual dentist who loved the Bengals, Buckeyes, and living “with energy, laughter, and generosity.” Monique, a devoted stay-at-home mom and “excellent baker,” was remembered as a “joyful” force who brought people together.

The December 6 scouting trip fits a stalker profile: testing access, confirming routines, waiting for the perfect moment. That opportunity came over the holidays, when the couple—still acting “like newlyweds” after five years—were home celebrating. Police released earlier alley footage of a “person of interest” walking near the residence in the pre-dawn hours of December 30, heightening suspicions. A prior 911 call months earlier reported a “domestic dispute” at the same address, though details remain murky.

McKee waived extradition in Illinois and pleaded not guilty remotely from jail. A search of his property uncovered multiple weapons, including one similar to the suspected murder weapon. Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant confirmed the link, while the Tepe family released a statement trusting the justice system to deliver accountability.

The revelation of the failed break-in has stunned neighbors and ignited fury. “He was planning this for weeks,” one friend told investigators, speculating the football game absence saved lives that night—but not ultimately. The children, now orphaned, represent the deepest tragedy: two innocents asleep while their parents were gunned down in the very home where Spencer and Monique exchanged vows.

As McKee awaits trial, the case exposes dark undercurrents of obsession, revenge, and stalking. How many signs were missed? How close did the couple come to escaping fate on December 6? The Big Ten game that spared them temporarily became the prelude to unimaginable horror.

Columbus mourns a vibrant couple cut down in their prime. Memorials of roses and sunflowers pile outside the bloodstained home. The community demands justice—not just for Spencer and Monique, but for every victim of escalating threats ignored until it’s too late.

The failed intrusion on game day wasn’t random—it was rehearsal. And on New Year’s Eve, the killer allegedly returned to finish what he started.