Police in Columbus, Ohio, said Wednesday that they have gathered enough evidence to link Michael David McKee to the double homicide of his ex-wife, Monique Tepe, and her husband, Spencer Tepe, in their Columbus home last month.
In an Associated Press interview, Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said authorities now believe McKee, 39, was the man seen walking down a dark alley near the Tepe residence in video footage from the night of the murders. Bryant also said investigators identified McKee’s vehicle traveling near the house, and that a firearm found at his Illinois residence traced to evidence at the scene.
Bryant said the department has evidence connecting the vehicle McKee was driving to the crime scene and evidence of him coming and going in that vehicle. She also said there were multiple firearms taken from McKee’s property and that “one of those firearms did match preliminarily from a NIBIN (ballistic) hit back to this actual homicide,” pointing to the ballistic identification process used by investigators.
Police said an attorney representing McKee could not be identified through court listings. McKee’s arrest Saturday ended nearly two weeks of speculation that had drawn national attention, and police said they had not found obvious signs of forced entry at the Tepes’ home. Police also said no weapon was found at the residence, that murder-suicide was not suspected, and that nothing was stolen, with the couple’s two young children and their dog left unharmed in the home.
Bryant said the department wants residents to keep sharing tips as the investigation continues. She told the AP that investigators followed up on every phone call, email and private tip submitted by the community, and that some of that information allowed police to gather enough evidence to make an arrest.
Police said McKee was apprehended in Rockford, Illinois. Bryant said the hospital where he worked, OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, said it was cooperating with the investigation.
McKee has been charged with premeditated aggravated murder in the shooting deaths, Columbus police said. Police said Monique Tepe divorced McKee in 2017; she was 39. Her husband, Spencer Tepe, was 37.
Police said McKee waived his right to an extradition hearing on Monday during an appearance in the 17th Judicial Circuit Court in Winnebago County, Illinois, where he remains in jail. Bryant said officials were working out details of his return to Ohio, with no exact arrival date set, and that his next hearing in Winnebago County is scheduled for Jan. 23.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther said Wednesday that the city does not prioritize high-profile cases over others. Ginther also told the AP that the city’s closure rate on criminal cases exceeds the national average and that Columbus celebrated in 2025 its lowest level of homicides and violent crime since 2007.
Ginther said, “Every case matters. Ones that receive national attention, and those that don’t,” adding that every family deserves closure and that the rest of the community deserves to be safe when dangerous people are taken off the street. He said central Ohioans should continue to grieve with the Tepes’ family, including their two young children, as they cope with “such an unimaginable loss,” and he said he wants the community to wrap its arms around them “for years to come.”
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