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Before K!lling His Ex-Wife and Her Husband in Ohio, the Surgeon Did Something Even More H0rrifying to His Old Car

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Michael McKee allegedly traveled 450 miles from Illinois to Ohio and then another 450 miles back to Illinois in just 17 hours, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by PEOPLE

Michael McKee

Michael McKee.Credit : Franklin County Jail

Michael McKee allegedly traveled 900 miles on the night he is accused of killing his ex-wife Monique Tepe and her dentist husband Spencer Tepe.

He allegedly left St. Anthony Hospital in Rockford, Ill. sometime after 5 p.m. on Dec. 29, 2025, which investigators determined based on the last time he used his cellular device, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.

That cellphone would remain untouched at the vascular surgeon’s workplace for the next 17 hours as he allegedly drove 450 miles to the Tepes’ home in Columbus, Ohio and then another 450 miles back to Illinois.

What time he left, the route he took and any stops he might have made along the way are not being shared by investigators at this time.

The Columbus Police Department did previously say, however, that a car linked to McKee allegedly arrived in the couple’s neighborhood just before 3:52 a.m. on Dec. 30, and left shortly after.

By noon on Dec. 30, McKee was back in Rockford.

Spencer Tepe and Monique Tepe.
Spencer Tepe and Monique Tepe.Courtesy of Rob Misleh

The drive from the hospital in Rockford to the house in Columbus takes about seven hours under normal conditions, but McKee was traveling the week of a holiday.

It is a drive he had allegedly completed at least once before though, according to the affidavit.

On Dec. 6, McKee was seen on video entering the couple’s Ohio property. He stayed there for a few hours before leaving, according to the affidavit.

That same night, Monique and Spencer were in Indiana watching their alma mater Ohio State University compete in the Big Ten Football Championship.

Friends told investigators after the couple’s death that Monique excused herself and returned to the hotel room at one point that night, prompting Spencer to later tell their friend she was “upset about something involving her ex-husband” and that he was “going back to the hotel.”

Monique and Spencer were days away from celebrating their fifth anniversary at the time.

Three weeks later, they would be shot dead as their two young children slept just a few feet away.

McKee was arrested on Jan. 10, 2026 after investigators linked him to a vehicle that could be seen on neighborhood surveillance cameras arriving near the crime scene just before Monique and Spencer were killed, and then leaving shortly after.

He was taken into custody by federal agents at a Chick-fil-A in Rockford.

A subsequent search of his property resulted in the discovery of multiple weapons, including one that Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said was similar to the weapon investigators suspect was used to kill Monique and Spencer.

McKee and Monique had met at Ohio State State University and were married in 2015.

The couple moved to Virginia after their wedding for McKee’s residency, but seven months into the relationship, the two separated and Monique moved back to Ohio.

Monique did not file for divorce until May 2017, stating in her filing that she and McKee were “incompatible.” A judge granted their divorce the following month.

McKee made his first court appearance at the Winnebago County Courthouse on Jan. 12, at which time he waived his extradition hearing and the public defender assigned to represent him informed the judge of his plan to plead not guilty to murder.

He was extradited to Ohio on Jan. 20 and is now being housed at the Franklin County Jail.

McKee previously refused to speak with detectives after his arrest in Illinois, with police telling PEOPLE he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.