OH - Spencer and Monique Tepe found shot to death at home 2 children unharmed, Columbus, 30 December 2025 *ex-husband arrested*

[isabella88]

Welcome back. Don't be such a stranger.

 

[Cassie P]

That's a big question for me as well, had Monique notified LE of the threats in the past or the Dec 6th incident? Did she think MM was just being a jerk and since he lived in another state didn't really take them so seriously?

Such a tragedy for the victims and all of the families, especially those young children left behind. Thank heavens he didn't harm them.

JMO

She may have been afraid to call the police for a number of reasons.

She may have been afraid to put his medical license in jeopardy. Which then would anger him even more or possibly cause him to press charges, accuse her of harassment. And damaging his income flow.

This is the kind of thing abusers/stalkers do. Put the victims in no win situations. If the victim fights back, they are the ones who end up getting sued, or arrested, etc.

 

[Cassie P]

Completely agree. This was a sold out event, above freezing, no precipitation and Ohio State was ahead at halftime. Any OSU fan knows the halftime show with TBDBITL is something to see, also. It might sound bizarre to others, but she would never have left that game at halftime unless it was very very serious. What I can't figure out is why ST didn't leave with her? He felt she was safe enough to leave alone and make her way to the hotel without him and I find that to be odd.

Yes exactly.

I too wondered why ST did not return to the hotel with MT.
Possible reasons:
-I think the Tepes were with friends at the game. Perhaps ST had driven to the stadium, and did not want to leave the friends stranded at the stadium when the game was over. But if ST felt his wife was in danger, he would have taken care of both situations? Get an Uber for his friends and attend to his wife. This would be consistent with how everyone describes him.
-MT did not want ST to know how afraid she was and what was happening. This is typical of abused women, they tend to hide their feelings and want to protect the rest of the family from the abuse. They keep it secret. They become isolated and alone as part of the abuse trauma.
-Perhaps she wanted to call the person taking care of the children to make sure they were OK. And didn't want ST to worry.
-MT herself did not understand that MM was spiraling totally out of control. She did not realize his career was headed in a bad direction, and perhaps drug abuse was now part of the picture.
-She had become so habituated to the stalking and abuse, she was no longer able to do an adequate risk assessment. Which also is common with abused women and stalking victims.

So I think we are left with two options: MT didn't want to alarm ST so downplayed everything.
Or MT herself did not realize the risk level due to her abuse trauma and/or not knowing how badly MM was spiraling out of control.

 

[starlightstarbright]

She may have been afraid to call the police for a number of reasons.

She may have been afraid to put his medical license in jeopardy. Which then would anger him even more or possibly cause him to press charges, accuse her of harassment. And damaging his income flow.

This is the kind of thing abusers/stalkers do. Put the victims in no win situations. If the victim fights back, they are the ones who end up getting sued, or arrested, etc.

Yes, reactive abuse.

 

[Kemug]

If Monique and Spencer did not recognise how much danger they were in, I suppose that is a blessing really.

 

[ttjo]

It's probably been a few years since I've posted on this site. I missed the respectful way crime is discussed here.

This case is really chilling to me. To think that Mo's "happily ever after" was tarnished by a stalker ex who eventually completely robbed her of that. For her and her husband to be killed in the middle of the night in what should have been the safety of their own home. The children.

I wonder if Mo ever reported the harassment and stalking to LE. On one hand, I can see her not reporting out of fear. On the other, I can see her reporting it and being told that they couldn't really do much unless her ex did something that met a certain threshold.

I also wonder if the alleged killer felt pushed to some edge because of how his career was going (no excuse, ever). He had a skilled, prestigious job but moved around a lot, leaving lawsuits behind him for malpractice. His life had careened out of control.

This is all just my opinion on what we've learned from documents and the media. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Im thinking she didnt, whether out of fear, or b/c she didnt want to escalate the situation. I dont think stalkers have common sense.
Doctors probably have an ethics board, and if they ever caught wind of something like harrassment Even out of the workplace , it could have consequences. Maybe a dr in here can confirm. If she reported his behavior and it impacted his work she would be even more scared. She probably didnt want to give him a reason to retaliate, Little did she know he was already there.

 

[arielilane]

For those that like podcasts That Chapter covered this case.

 

[arielilane]

'They were amazing people': Friend remembers Spencer and Monique Tepe

https://twitter.com/x/status/2016877753539109360

'They were amazing people': Friend remembers Spencer and Monique Tepe

A recently released affidavit revealed new details in the killings of Spencer and Monique Tepe.

www.wkyc.com

Updated: 10:34 AM EST January 29, 2026



RELATED: Court docs reveal new details in Tepe murder case; McKee allegedly spotted outside home weeks before killings

 

[Cassie P]

Yes, reactive abuse.

Yes stalkers who are professionals, very smart, very educated are the worst in setting up their victims. Setting up no win traps.

 

[jeff2034]

Completely agree. This was a sold out event, above freezing, no precipitation and Ohio State was ahead at halftime. Any OSU fan knows the halftime show with TBDBITL is something to see, also. It might sound bizarre to others, but she would never have left that game at halftime unless it was very very serious. What I can't figure out is why ST didn't leave with her? He felt she was safe enough to leave alone and make her way to the hotel without him and I find that to be odd.

IF you read the affidavit carefully, it does not explicitly say that she left the game alone. It implies that ST did not leave with her, but that does not mean no one else left with her. If ST did not leave with her, perhaps he didn't sense an immediate danger. If what got MT upset at the game was either ST or MT seeing MM at their house via the ring camera, which I suspect it was, while it is creepy and terrifying, it is not an immediate and present danger since Columbus to Indianapolis is about a 3 hour drive. Certainly Indianapolis at night is not the safest place either so I would be shocked if she actually left alone.

 

[ttjo]

Watch him walk.

 

[ttjo]

IF you read the affidavit carefully, it does not explicitly say that she left the game alone. It implies that ST did not leave with her, but that does not mean no one else left with her. If ST did not leave with her, perhaps he didn't sense an immediate danger. If what got MT upset at the game was either ST or MT seeing MM at their house via the ring camera, which I suspect it was, while it is creepy and terrifying, it is not an immediate and present danger since Columbus to Indianapolis is about a 3 hour drive. Certainly Indianapolis at night is not the safest place either so I would be shocked if she actually left alone.

Considering the game started at 8 pm Maybe they planned on staying the night in a hotel?
Maybe leaving the game was not a big deal. There are a few hotels near that stadium. She could have left for a short time and them returned?

 

[Caylee Advocate]

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/franklin-county/tepe-murder-case-video-shows-suspect-michael-mckee-booked-into-jail/

 

[Cassie P]

IF you read the affidavit carefully, it does not explicitly say that she left the game alone. It implies that ST did not leave with her, but that does not mean no one else left with her. If ST did not leave with her, perhaps he didn't sense an immediate danger. If what got MT upset at the game was either ST or MT seeing MM at their house via the ring camera, which I suspect it was, while it is creepy and terrifying, it is not an immediate and present danger since Columbus to Indianapolis is about a 3 hour drive. Certainly Indianapolis at night is not the safest place either so I would be shocked if she actually left alone.

Another person familiar with OSU football stated that it is highly unlikely that fans would leave a championship game at half time. Especially when OSU was ahead at half time. And the band is fabulous. It is also not a cheap out of town weekend, the football tickets, hotel, dinner, etc.

So MT would not have left on a whim or for something minor. But it is unlikely she would ask someone else to go with her. By all accounts ST was a doting, attentive husband and would have gone with his wife in an emergency. So perhaps she did not want him to know how concerned she was. Which is typical of abused women. They are traumatized and habituated to violence and aggressive behavior. They try to keep the peace, keep things calm, down play it so things do not escalate. It is an age old survival tactic, especially when there are children involved.

Also women who have been abused or victims of a stalker can develop low self esteem. They don't feel they are worth inconveniencing others, or causing anyone any trouble.

 

[Cassie P]

Considering the game started at 8 pm Maybe they planned on staying the night in a hotel?
Maybe leaving the game was not a big deal. There are a few hotels near that stadium. She could have left for a short time and them returned?

For OSU foot ball fans, leaving a championship game at half time when OSU was ahead, but only by 4 points, is unlikely unless for good reason.

 

[Cassie P]

Yes, reactive abuse.

It is also possible MT was worried about her husband's license. She knew what MM was capable of, and didn't want ST to be dragged into the situation. She was protecting him.

 

[acutename]

Tepee Backyard,

If he was not actually planting some devices, he could have been checking on their alarm system, their Wifi signal, seeing where the windows were. He could also have scoped out the area- ways to approach, places to park, avenues of escape. Maybe once he was in the mid west again, he started snooping more online, asking mutual friends more questions, seeing the wedding video- maybe it all sort of "snow balled" from bad curiosity to a bigger obsession. We really do not know if he was there even earlier- checking their vehicles, snooping through their garbage? spying? I would think that some of Monique's closest friends would have known how she felt but maybe some less close people had no idea what had happened to her, so maybe he asked a lot of people questions, and until he approached some one who was really close, it did not get back to her. For all we know, maybe Monique thought he was still out west. (all speculation. my thought, since she ran away from him with her parents' help, she never spoke to him or contacted him. I would think if he got her phone # and called or texted, she would have blocked him and changed the # IMO)

 

[OhioGuy]

We have no idea which hotel they stayed in, but having been to many Big Ten Championship games, I know that at least one hotel (JW Marriott) connects directly to the stadium. You don’t even need to go outdoors to access, just a sky bridge.

These games do not have in & out privileges. Once you leave, the only way to re enter would be by buying another ticket.

Without knowing when they purchased the hotel and/or their game tickets, the cost of the day (ticket, hotel, food & drink) would’ve likely been north of 1000 per person. Only adding that total as there was speculation above. Not a game you’d leave lightly.

 

[TiKani]

I'm not sure if this will be useful here. But as a woman with a long time (decades) constantly active violent stalker it has been interesting to read the discussion here. Particularly about the swings between recognizing danger and being so exhausted by it you want to believe it is not real + the law and cops not really being structured at all to protect victims of stalking before more violence happens, and fearing that others think you are overreacting when your system, via trauma, responds to flags/triggers intensely. (Ie whatever occurred on December 6th.)

So much of my life always/now has to be structured on how to "stay safe." And that is exhausting and limiting and annoying. But not so long ago a larger situation occurred where I felt morally like I needed to speak out and be visible. It had zero to do with my stalker, but stalkers think everything you do has to do with them. Before I did it, I spoke to an expert in such situations/violence and she told me, more or less, "There is no perfect way you can act so as not to trigger your stalker to escalate. They are not rational. If you make every single decision about your life so as not to try to trigger them, you are only limiting yourself. And giving them that power over you doesn't actually keep you safe. There will never be a perfect way for you to act in order to ensure that your stalker does not escalate in violence."

I keep thinking about that internal math I do as I read this thread. And I hate that MT had to do this math too. There is no logic, there is no ideal perfect way to move or act that will keep you safe. A violent obsessed stalker does not operate within such logic. Nothing you do is responsible for the harm; but also, no matter how much you think about it, there is no perfect way to move to neutralize the harm.

 

[isabella88]

Im thinking she didnt, whether out of fear, or b/c she didnt want to escalate the situation. I dont think stalkers have common sense.
Doctors probably have an ethics board, and if they ever caught wind of something like harrassment Even out of the workplace , it could have consequences. Maybe a dr in here can confirm. If she reported his behavior and it impacted his work she would be even more scared. She probably didnt want to give him a reason to retaliate, Little did she know he was already there.

I work in healthcare and very closely with doctors. They certainly have an ethics code but not all of them follow that code.