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

[missdeemenour]

Just so you’re aware, you can disagree (it was just a possibility) but this is a crime website where we have to look at every angle. Keep an open mind. Consider the connections in their life. Consider the people who became familiar or intimate with this murdered couple.

This isn’t a moral high ground where you have to defend Little Brothers.

Little Brothers can be men who do drugs and fall into crime or do bad things, just like those who are not in Little Brothers.

Like I said, anything is possible, I just personally don’t see anything pointing in that direction. The fact the kid needed charity is not meaningful enough for me. And tbh, thinking that Spencer’s good heart could lead to this just makes me sad.

That said, I recall how Elizabeth Smart’s kidnapper was a vagrant that her Dad hired out of charity. Truly, sometimes no good deed goes unpunished

 

[Speculaytor]

It has been assumed that robbery was not a motive. But who would know if PART of her jewelry was missing, or anything else unknown. My father had a coin collection. Had someone taken 1/4 of it, my mother would never have known.

I mention this because that would be another reason to go to the bedroom. To steal small, easy to pass valuables. (Watches, wallets, jewelry, these days phones, tablets). Shot because Monique woke up and was shot, Spencer started to get up was wounded, then a final, fatal shot (why he was on the floor).

While it looks like targeted on the surface, I have to leave robbery on the table unless someone knew everything they owned and has accounted for all of it.

My thoughts too. I was burglarized, it took time to figure out all that was missing. My family would not have known, at least not right away, what was missing in small valuables. There are still so many possibilities.

It was 23-26 degrees that night, he was in a hoody and jeans. Did he have a car somewhere, or did he live in the area? He would not have lasted long in that temp in what he was wearing. He didn't look like he had been out there too long and was absolutely freezing?

I watched a couple of mini documentaries about Weiland Park. It has a history, used to be very bad, then with loans and programs they were able to turn it around, give loans to beautify, built affordable housing and gave loans to locals to buy. Then, when they got it turned around, investors began to buy open lots from torn down public housing units and build expensive homes, like that owned by the Tepe's. I can see where people who have been in Weiland Park all their lives would be resentful of the gentrification of their area. I can also see the home, and those around it being targeted for stashed cash, or jewelry etc.

I lean toward targeted, but that could mean by someone in the local area. Targeted due to resentment, hate, or stashed cash, jewelry, and medicine cabinet narcotics. I would definitely KNOW there would be fine jewelry in that house. Home invade in middle of the night, order homeowners to cough up their valuables and narcotics via gun threat. IDK? They just seem like such nice upstanding people, kind and gentle that I can't imagine they made people mad, jealous maybe, resentful, but not mad.

 

[Hexe]

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/columbus/columbus-police-release-video-of-person-of-interest-near-home-where-couple-was-killed/

The video of the potential person of interest looks like a tall, bulky male, maybe trying to disguise his gait or at least slightly shuffling/limping.

Did any of Tepes have brother/cousin/friend that was often in trouble and often crashed in their place? They wouldn't open their door for a stranger, but someone known and allegedly in need, maybe?

 

[katydid23]

How would the brother-in-law know if the children slept through the shooting?

I have 2 thoughts about this comment the BIL made:

Maybe he wanted to protect the 4 yr old by telling the public she never saw anything. I'd want the public to think that about my niece and nephew.

As to how he'd know---maybe the family were told that the kids were found in their rooms, and there was no evidence they had gone into the bedroom with the crime scene. There'd be bloody footprints etc, if they had gone in and touched their parents.

 

[OhioGuy]

ST lived 1 1/2 hours from dental practice and had wife, 2 little kids, and dog at home. Clearly to me the killer would get some alert that someone occupied the Tepe home at time of murders. I think it's unusual for a dentist to work 1 1/2 hours from office- that's 3 hours commute time per day. I wonder if there is any connection with former office? Or if family had plans to move closer to current office?

While 1:15 minutes one way to work is more than typical, we don’t know how many days per week he’s in that specific office. He’s owned the home since 2020 so if he’s at his original interest rate, it’s in the 3’s. There’s also not much between Columbus and Athens, if they wanted urban living this is the closest. Also, I thought upthread there was speculation he owned a Tesla. I have a friend who works 3 days a week over 2 hours from their home as they took this promotion after having roots planted in the form of home owned and community involvement. They drive a Tesla so it self drives. This person is able to answer emails, attend virtual meetings, and the like so the time in transit is far less wasted.

Edit to add: only included the interest rate because in the time since they bought, the rates and the values have exploded. Are we going to uproot our family, nearly double our interest rate, and get way less house to save X minutes a week?

 

[osu]

How many people would kill two people for money owed to a dentist? First, they make an assessment, take a deposit…then part in the middle of the job

The choices are:

- not to pay. Will be written off as bad debt.
- make a payment plan
- agree to pay 2/3 and 1/3 to be waived as the collection company takes 1/3

In short, to risk life over unpaid debt to a dentist? Someone very young or very stupid, maybe.

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Can they be “disco boots” with high heel and a platform? One can buy them, plus clothes in the style, for the Halloween or similar party. The same companies may sell wigs, too

Search for “disco boots men”, “gothic shoes men”, “platform shoes”, you may find something of the type

The boots look very similar to Dr. Marten’s which are popular here in Ohio for the Wintertime with young adults to middle age.

The two photos below are Doc boots currently sold at American Eagle.

 

[Charlot123]

Looks Caucasian, young, and wearing a mask.

The problem is, we can edit the picture but not increase the resolution. Some of us see certain patterns. I honestly don’t.

All I can be sure of is that they are human.

As to the rest? Unsure about the gender. More likely it is a man but I’m not fully sure. Just because they walk surely in the darkness on a slippery road, I think they are “not old”. I think I see some gracefulness there but again, night and bad resolution, so I might be wrong.

So if you see a mask, great. If someone says the pants look like jeans, wonderful. I think it is a hoodie but who knows.

 

[gremlin444]

Hi I'm a long time reader first time posting.... But with that being said, I'm not certain if theories are allowed?
He was a Dentist... He had access to prescription pads... He hales from the heroin capital of the world when it comes to overdose deaths due to opiates (imo)... Could he have had an old friend that he would occasionally give a scrip to that maybe showed up demanding some and ST told him no or was confrontational because of the nature of the visit?

In Ohio, controlled substances can't be done on a paper pad--they have to be sent in electronically.

 

[katydid23]

Did any of Tepes have brother/cousin/friend that was often in trouble and often crashed in their place? They wouldn't open their door for a stranger, but someone known and allegedly in need, maybe?

Allegedly, yes.

 

[katydid23]

While 1:15 minutes one way to work is more than typical, we don’t know how many days per week he’s in that specific office. He’s owned the home since 2020 so if he’s at his original interest rate, it’s in the 3’s. There’s also not much between Columbus and Athens, if they wanted urban living this is the closest. Also, I thought upthread there was speculation he owned a Tesla. I have a friend who works 3 days a week over 2 hours from their home as they took this promotion after having roots planted in the form of home owned and community involvement. They drive a Tesla so it self drives. This person is able to answer emails, attend virtual meetings, and the like so the time in transit is far less wasted.

Edit to add: only included the interest rate because in the time since they bought, the rates and the values have exploded. Are we going to uproot our family, nearly double our interest rate, and get way less house to save X minutes a week?

I'm not sure if this is true, but I read that the school system was better in Columbus and more things /opportunities for the children in terms of classes, sports etc.

 

[Charlot123]

The boots look very similar to Dr. Marten’s which are popular here in Ohio for the Wintertime with young adults to middle age.

The two photos below of Doc boots are sold at American Eagle.

Doc Martens! Ugly but super convenient. Right. But, there is the issue of “trend”. They used to be popular, the last group who’d probably find them trendy were young millennials. (I don’t know a single old millennial or gen Z wanting to wear them. Maybe it is me). Docs would suit the goth clothes, and look nice with long black lacy skirts + black or dark purple nail color…goths would be the last group wearing them, but it is in the past. So the person liking Doc Martens should be around 40es. What do you think?

 

[Fromeaster]

He's wearing a mask, it seems to me.

 

[OhioGuy]

I'm not sure if this is true, but I read that the school system was better in Columbus and more things /opportunities for the children in terms of classes, sports etc.

Columbus has infinitely more resources. Athens is unfortunately in a very low income area that is nearly entirely dependent on Ohio U. I have no data but I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of professionals that work in Athens live in the Columbus metro area. Lancaster is a suburb of about 45k people that is 35 minutes to Columbus and 45 minutes to Athens, and it’s the closest you get to having city type of amenities unless you live in Athens.

 

[Charlot123]

In Ohio, controlled substances can't be done on a paper pad--they have to be sent in electronically.

But the time has changed. I doubt a dentist would be eager to prescribe painkillers, period.

 

[osu]

Doc Martens! Ugly but super convenient. Right. But, there is the issue of “trend”. They used to be popular, the last group who’d probably find them trendy were young millennials. (I don’t know a single old millennial or gen Z wanting to wear them. Maybe it is me). Docs would suit the goth clothes, and look nice with long black lacy skirts + black or dark purple nail color…goths would be the last group wearing them, but it is in the past. So the person liking Doc Martens should be around 40es. What do you think?

I know of a few younger (20’s) women/men who work at my local Dillards shoe department here in Ohio who wear Doc boots. Dillards, American Eagle, Macys, and Journeys, all stock men’s and women’s Doc’s at my local mall.

I think they’re now used more for Winter weather than in the past when they were mostly just popular with the goth crowd.

 

[Jge24]

Doc Martens! Ugly but super convenient. Right. But, there is the issue of “trend”. They used to be popular, the last group who’d probably find them trendy were young millennials. (I don’t know a single old millennial or gen Z wanting to wear them. Maybe it is me). Docs would suit the goth clothes, and look nice with long black lacy skirts + black or dark purple nail color…goths would be the last group wearing them, but it is in the past. So the person liking Doc Martens should be around 40es. What do you think?

I disagree as someone in my 30s who works with 20-something’s. They all own Docs and they’ve had quite a resurgence. Yes - initially popular with millennials but fashion is cyclical.

 

[wibbleflea]

Doc Martens! Ugly but super convenient. Right. But, there is the issue of “trend”. They used to be popular, the last group who’d probably find them trendy were young millennials. (I don’t know a single old millennial or gen Z wanting to wear them. Maybe it is me). Docs would suit the goth clothes, and look nice with long black lacy skirts + black or dark purple nail color…goths would be the last group wearing them, but it is in the past. So the person liking Doc Martens should be around 40es. What do you think?

I have a Gen Z niece (23) and nephew (17) in uni and high school respectively and Doc Martens are cool to them and their friends. (It surprised me when I heard!)

 

[Hexe]

Would a standard burglar show up with a weapon fitted with a suppressor, seek out the home's occupants in their bedroom, kill them and not take anything? Idk. But I'm just speculating.

A suppresor does not work like that. It just make a very loud BLAM! slightly less loud. Considering that Tepes were murdered during the 29/30 December night, I'd rather suspect there was an audible gunshot but due to fireworks cracking in every corner of the city people were not giving that kind of sounds any attention.

 

[OhioSleuth614]

How would the brother-in-law know if the children slept through the shooting?

I haven't seen his message but my guess is they have evidence that the kids didn't leave their room(s).

 

[stmarysmead]

A two inch USB and a crypto wallet passkey could be worth millions. And there have been a few high profile cases of people being tortured and murdered for that.

Again, the information about no *apparent* robbery came from the brother in law. It's very possible it's incorrect or they just don't know yet. Personal interviews and a quick forensic audit of the financials would help if they had anything like this. We just don't know. But, yeah, as I mentioned upthread irrational criminals like tweakers etc. panic and in many cases end up killing the homeowners and fleeing with no illicit gains.

I am most curious about the layout of the crimescene and ballistics now. How far away from the victims were the casings. What was the entry and exit wound angle/bloodspatter. Were they killed in bed, or did the scene indicate a struggle. etc. These area ll things the police already know. I would also be curious of any security entry/status/etc. I think people are overestimating a DIY SimpliSafe alarm, a generic "smart lock" the builder installed, and a singe Ring doorbell camera, in an area baser on factual history were I would have my home a fortress.

Yes, I would definitely need it to be a fortress as well.

In a strange murder case like this, every tiny aspect of the victim’s life could hold a secret or a clue. Their choice to live in this area with small children strikes me as odd. Zillow showed that they could have made a nice profit, so it wouldn’t seem to be financial.

Curious choice IMO for a young family with small children and a husband with a very long commute. The park down the street has been said to be too dangerous for their children to use. Someone’s child was shot there in the period of time after their first child was born.

IMO their backyard is one that I could not let my children play in, unattended, even for a few minutes. The comment from the neighbor that he often heard gunshots is also unsettling.

I know the area has been referenced as ‘gentrified’ but it looks like 4 houses that stick out like show-off targets in a vastly different socio-economic area.

The house itself has big windows as if it looks onto a lake, instead of facing apartment windows that can possibly see in. It has a fake french door ‘balcony’ that just undermines security and privacy even more.

On the flip side, I can see that house/location being desirable to a young professional couple, walking distance to bars, restaurants, night life. But they quickly moved beyond that stage after purchase. Looks like they had their first child within the first year of living there.

I’m sure LE is looking into every aspect of this couple’s life. Was there some aspect of their life that explained their choice to stay there, with a job so far away, and children to consider? Was M taking classes where someone might become obsessed with her? Was there a bar/restaurant that they frequented as a couple? Did they still go out a lot, hire babysitters who might have the code? Did they have a friend group that they were reluctant to move away from?

Probably nothing. One person’s ‘creep out’ is another person’s idea of paradise.