At a Glance
- Vascular surgeon Michael McKee disappeared after being sued for leaving an 8.6-inch catheter shard in a patient’s leg.
- Three months later, his ex-wife Monique Tepe and her husband Spencer Tepe were shot dead while their children, 4 and 1, slept nearby.
- Detectives traced McKee to Illinois through surveillance video; he was arrested Jan. 10 and awaits extradition to Ohio on two counts of aggravated murder.
Why it matters: The case links an unserved malpractice complaint to a double homicide, raising questions about how quickly a doctor under legal pressure can vanish-and reappear as a murder suspect.
Michael McKee’s whereabouts were a mystery for weeks. Process servers couldn’t find him. Co-workers said he had “just disappeared.” Then, on Dec. 30, 2025, his ex-wife Monique Tepe and her husband Spencer were found murdered in their Columbus home. Detectives followed surveillance footage to Illinois, where McKee had started a new life. On Jan. 10, 2026, he was booked into Winnebago County Jail, charged with two counts of aggravated murder with premeditation.
The Malpractice Suit That Preceded the Murders
The chain of events began with a botched surgery. On Sept. 29, 2025, an amended complaint filed in Clark County, Nevada, accused McKee of overseeing an operation at Las Vegas Surgical Associates during which an 8.6-inch catheter fragment broke off inside a patient’s leg. The suit claims McKee failed to properly train or supervise a colleague, causing the device to shear and leaving the shard in the plaintiff’s body.
Consequences listed in the complaint include:
- Lower-extremity bleeding
- Edema and persistent pain
- Discoloration and disfigurement
- Additional unspecified injuries
The plaintiff is seeking damages “totaling over $50,000.” A trial is scheduled for July 2027.
Process servers tried for more than a month to hand McKee the papers. On Oct. 9, one of his co-workers told the server McKee had “just disappeared.” By Nov. 10, the patient’s attorney asked a judge for permission to serve McKee via publication-announcing his role as a defendant in a legal journal instead of handing him the documents personally. The court approved the motion on Jan. 6, 2026-four days before McKee’s arrest.
A New Life in Illinois
McKee left Nevada sometime after May 2024, the date the original malpractice suit was filed against his employer. Illinois medical records show he obtained a state license in October 2024 and took a position at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in Rockford. In July 2025 he bought a Chicago penthouse for $400,000.
He was still working at the Rockford hospital when detectives closed in.
The Night of the Killings
Monique and Spencer Tepe celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary days before the attack. On the night of Dec. 30, 2025, someone entered their Columbus home and shot them while their two young children slept nearby. An arrest warrant filed in Franklin County Court states that neighborhood surveillance video helped police identify a suspect and track a vehicle that “arrived just prior to the homicides and left shortly after.”
Investigators followed the trail 450 miles to Rockford, Illinois, where McKee was arrested on Jan. 10. He appeared in an Illinois courtroom on Jan. 12 and waived extradition. He is now expected in Franklin County Court for arraignment as early as this week.
Legal Coverage Remains Uncertain
Neither Nevada nor Illinois requires physicians to carry medical-malpractice insurance. Court filings do not indicate whether McKee held a policy, meaning any judgment in the malpractice case could potentially be paid out of pocket.
What Happens Next
- Ohio prosecutors have not disclosed a suspected motive for the killings; more details may emerge during Mcraignment.
- The malpractice case remains active with McKee listed as a defendant.
- If convicted of murder, McKee could face life imprisonment or the death penalty under Ohio law.
Key Takeaways
- A civil malpractice suit filed in September went unserved because the defendant allegedly vanished.
- Three months later, the same man-Michael McKee-was charged with the execution-style murders of his ex-wife and her husband.
- The sequence highlights how quickly a professional under legal pressure can relocate across state lines, complicating both civil and criminal proceedings.
