On December 30, police in Columbus, Ohio responded to a call for a wellness check at the home of a local dentist and his wife. The dentist’s boss and coworkers were concerned because he hadn’t shown up for work and they couldn’t reach either of them. Inside, police found the bodies of Spencer and Monique Tepe, who had been shot sometime in the early hours of the morning. There was no sign of forced entry and no gun found at the scene. Their two young children were unharmed.
Over the weekend, cops arrested Monique’s ex-husband, a vascular surgeon named Michael McKee. Police found McKee’s car on surveillance footage and tracked it 450 miles to Rockford, IL, where he currently works. A firearm which may be linked to the murders was found at his home, and he’s been charged with premeditated aggravated murder. As it turns out, McKee had other legal troubles before this arrest. While living and working in Las Vegas, he oversaw a surgery in 2023 that went terribly wrong. This past September, he was named as a defendant in a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Michael McKee allegedly oversaw a botched surgery at Las Vegas Surgical Associates during which an 8.6-inch catheter shard broke off in a patient’s leg, according to a copy of an amended complaint filed in Clark County Court and obtained by PEOPLE.
That amended complaint was filed on Sept. 29, 2025, and the patient’s lawyer spent over a month trying to track McKee down with no luck. At one point, the process server tasked with delivering the complaint to McKee spoke with one of his co-workers about his whereabouts, according to a declaration of due diligence filed in the case, and was told: “[He] just disappeared.”
McKee was working at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, a job he took after leaving Las Vegas and moving to Chicago. That move happened sometime after May 2024, which is when the malpractice lawsuit was first filed against McKee’s Las Vegas employer.
Illinois state medical records show that McKee had been licensed to practice in the state starting in October 2024, and just this past July he purchased a penthouse apartment in Chicago for $400,000.
Then, in September, McKee was named in the amended complaint.
The complaint alleges that the “failure of … Michael David McKee, M.D. to properly train or supervise [his co-worker] … caused the catheter or device to shear or fracture, leaving an 8.6-inch portion of the device in the plaintiff’s body.”
It goes on to claim that the plaintiff suffered “numerous adverse sequelae” because McKee allegedly “breached the standard of care,” including “lower extremity bleeding, edema, pain, discoloration, disfigurement, and other injuries.”
On Oct. 9, McKee’s co-worker told the process server that the vascular surgeon had “just disappeared” and on Nov. 10, the plaintiff’s lawyer filed a motion asking the judge that he be able to serve McKee via publication.
The judge delayed hearing arguments on that motion — which would allow the plaintiff to identify McKee as being a defendant in the complaint in a legal journal in lieu of physically serving him the legal document — multiple times before finally approving the motion on Jan. 6, 2026, just four days before McKee’s arrest.
As of now, the case is set to go to trial in July 2027 with McKee as one of the defendants.
The plaintiff is seeking damages totaling over $50,000, and because neither Nevada or Illinois require doctors to be insured for medical malpractice, it is unclear if McKee would be covered if convicted or be forced to pay out of pocket.
Holy cow, a 8.6-inch portion of a broken catheter was left in the patient’s body? That’s a huge f-ck up. How does that even happen? I also would have sued him, the co-worker who performed the surgery, and the entire practice. I hope that person is okay now. The lawyer that filed the lawsuit claimed in an interview that they tried to serve him nine times and that the address and phone number provided to them by McKee’s old employers ended up being fake. That’s so sketchy.
As for the whole ”He just disappeared” thing…he didn’t just disappear. He was evading being served in a malpractice lawsuit and living it up in Chicago while (allegedly) plotting to drive seven hours to (allegedly) kill his ex-wife and her husband. No motive has been announced, but family members say he was “emotionally abusive” during their marriage, which ended when they separated in 2016 after just eight months. They also claim that Monique was still “terrified” of him. I’m betting that as more people who knew McKee start to speak out, this malpractice suit will be just the tip of the iceberg.
Photos are screenshots from YouTube and credit Tepee family/GoFundMe
What an incompetent, evil hateful man. Not surprised that an abuser would be horrible at his job.
Monique paid for the private judge they used to expedite the divorce. AND paid him something like $1800 dollars to settle their shared debt.
His ego was so massive and he so consumed by hatred & jealousy, he plotted revenge instead of dealing with the breakup up.
Scary, scary guy. I’m glad he’s been found brought up on charges, but so very sorry that he wasn’t found early enough to prevent the deaths of his ex & her husband. Those poor kids.
I’ve listened to the 999 calls from his colleagues, they called repeatedly and ended up going over themselves as they were so worried about him.
It spoke so well of him that they were so concerned- and looking at them, they seemed like such a lovely couple.
How horrific for the 2 kids to be left alone in a house withe parents’ bodies there. You could hear them scream in the background of some of the calls… tragic
I heard them too, it broke my heart. That the operator wasn’t exactly sympathetic. On top of the cops went to the wrong home the first time.
If the co-workers had listened to the cops. Spencer and Michelle could have been in that home for days. While their toddler and baby suffered and probably would have perished themselves from dehydration.
Reminds me of the Chris Watts case. If Shannon bestie didn’t call the cops when she didn’t return her call. Knowing she had a dr. appt. And the neighbor that had the security video. That admitted later on lying about hearing fighting. Just to make sure the cops looked at Chris. Since he knew something was wrong. That Chris told her not to call the cops. He might have time to stage the home and get rid of more evidence. Or move Shannon from the oil site. Never underestimate the power of love, friendship and good neighbors. Always looking out for you. When law enforcement fails.
He really seems like a petty man that blamed all his self created problems on Michelle. Like any run or the mill psychopath does.
I was also watching a YT video from a crime content creator. That there are a lot of sites that sell ways to get around the security system they had. IIRC they thought it was SimpliSafe.
Which may be a reason there was no forced entry.
I had no idea that a doctor doesn’t need malpractice insurance in some states. That’s crazy. This man is just evil. What a shame for the families and especially the children.
It’s just so sad. I’m glad the children are alive and hope they are able to recover from this.
What a terrible person.
when I was in medical school I briefly dated a guy who was a second year resident. after I broke up with him, he stalked me for a bit. I reported him to the program office and after that he left me alone.
the next woman he dated, though, after she dumped him HE TRIED TO HIRE A HIT MAN TO TAKE HER OUT. he got caught and ended up going to prison. it was unreal.
not all doctors are decent people.
I think the bad apples in particular think they will get away with the perfect murder. Due to their God complexes.
We have had a few Doctors go down in the last few years murdering their wives.
Even though they divorced many years ago, it was a DV case. He never got over her leaving him. Which is why I hope that Ms. Jolie always protects herself.
That’s narcissism — no concern for the lives of others to the point of malpractice.
And importantly — Monique was only married to him for 8 months. This POS was that arrogant — it’s not like they had a lifelong relationship and she had recently left him.
I know this is off the subject, but he bought a penthouse apartment for $400,000? Surely it was more like $4 million?
What a POS. Those poor kids.
This poor woman. RIP.
Medical schools need to screen more effectively for malignant people. It’s not OK for someone like this to get through and continue practicing.
Must be the mood I’m in here in the US, but my first reaction, honestly, is that he’s a straight, white, male, legal citizen. But none of that will never be used as a descriptor for this POS.