At a Glance
- Monique and Spencer Tepe were killed in their Columbus, Ohio home on December 30, five years after their wedding ceremony
- Monique’s ex-husband Michael McKee was arrested 450 miles away and charged with two counts of aggravated murder with premeditation
- The couple exchanged emotional vows in the same house in January 2021, with Monique referencing her past “bad Bumble dates” and “wrong relationships”
Why it matters: The case reveals how a former spouse allegedly targeted the couple in a premeditated attack in the very home where they celebrated their love.
A wedding video has taken on chilling significance after Monique and Spencer Tepe were found murdered in their Columbus, Ohio home-five years to the month after they exchanged heartfelt vows in the same living room.
The couple, who married legally on December 13, 2020, held an intimate ceremony and reception on January 31, 2021 for family and close friends. The celebration took place in the home Spencer had purchased just blocks from Ohio State University, where both had attended college.
During her vows, Monique became emotional as she reflected on the romantic missteps that led her to Spencer.
“Spencer, what can I say? From day one, I knew you were something special,” she began. “I had quite a journey to get to you, countless bad Bumble dates, wrong relationships, and waterfalls of tears. But it was worth every cringing second because it led me to you.”
She continued, her voice cracking: “Throughout all of this, I knew that God was guiding me to my person, and that when I met him, it would be the most magical thing ever. And, boy, is that an understatement.”
Monique called Spencer her “lobster” and praised his “beautiful heart” before concluding: “I will love you forever, and I’m so lucky to be Mrs. Tepe.”
Spencer, who affectionately called his bride “Mo-Mo,” reciprocated the sentiment in his vows.
“I vow to support you, to believe in you and to encourage you. I vow to provide for you. I vow to never stop loving you and to always keep working on us,” he said. “And lastly, I vow to do my best to always keep making you laugh, because your smile is my favorite thing. I love you.”
The evening continued with dancing, toasts and laughter. Monique’s sister Amanda delivered an emotional speech, telling the couple: “I’ve never seen you so happy and it’s never seemed just so right.”
That joy would be shattered five years later when police responded to the couple’s home in the early morning hours of December 30. Both Monique and Spencer were found dead, victims of what investigators quickly determined was a targeted attack.
Detectives identified a suspect through neighborhood surveillance footage, according to court documents. The video showed a vehicle arriving just before the homicides and leaving shortly after. Investigators tracked the car and linked it to Michael David McKee–Monique’s ex-husband.
The couple’s murder scene held a grim irony: the same walls that once echoed with wedding vows and laughter had become a crime scene.
Police allege McKee was in possession of the vehicle both before and after the killings. He was arrested 450 miles away in Rockford, Illinois on January 10 while driving to the medical office where he worked.
Authorities took McKee into federal custody and transported him to Winnebago County Jail to await extradition to Ohio. He declined to speak with detectives, invoking his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent.
At his first court appearance on January 12, McKee’s public defender told the judge his client would waive extradition and intended to plead not guilty to both counts of aggravated murder with premeditation once returned to Ohio.
The arrest warrant, filed in Franklin County Court, outlined the evidence against McKee but did not specify a motive. The timing proved particularly cruel-the killings occurred just as the couple was approaching their fifth wedding anniversary.
Monique had divorced McKee more than three years before her wedding to Spencer, suggesting the alleged perpetrator had harbored resentment for years before acting.
The case has left family and friends grappling with how a celebration of love in that same home could end in such violence. The wedding video, once a treasured memory, now serves as evidence of the happiness that was stolen.
Amanda S. Bennett reported this story for News Of Losangeles.
Key Takeaways:
- The Tepe’s wedding vows, filled with hope and love, were spoken in the same home where they would later be killed
- Michael McKee, Monique’s ex-husband, was arrested based on surveillance footage and vehicle tracking
- The suspect was caught 450 miles away and faces two counts of aggravated murder with premeditation
- McKee has not spoken publicly about the case and plans to plead not guilty
