The household of the Ohio couple gunned down of their house mentioned the alleged killer, Michael McKee, would “torment” ex-wife Monique Tepe throughout their quick marriage, earlier than he allegedly broke into her home and murdered her and her second husband, a dentist.
“She simply needed to get away from him,” Monique’s brother, Rob Misleh, instructed ABC Information’ “Good Morning America” of Dr. Michael McKee on Wednesday, as police revealed they imagine they discovered the homicide weapon on the vascular surgeon’s Illinois house.
Misleh mentioned McKee was emotionally abusive to Monique throughout their temporary marriage — which lasted from 2015 to 2017 earlier than they divorced, citing incompatibility, in response to divorce paperwork.
“Myself and lots of others have been properly conscious of, form of, the unfavorable affect that he had on her. And the abuse that he put her by, the torment that he put her by,” Misleh mentioned.
“She was keen to do something to get out of there,” he mentioned.
“She was a really robust individual,” Misleh added.
The pair had no kids collectively and Monique, 39, married her new husband, Spencer Tepe, 37, in December 2020, in response to their obituary.
McKee, 39, is accused of breaking into the Tepes’ Columbus house in the midst of the evening on Dec. 30 and capturing them useless of their bed room, leaving their two younger kids unhurt in one other room, in response to police.
He was arrested greater than per week in a while Saturday in Rockford, Illinois, after police traced his automobile to the scene the evening of the murders.
Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant on Wednesday described the killings as a “focused assault” and home violence. She revealed police found the gun believed for use within the murders.
“A number of weapons have been taken from the property of McKee, and there’s a preliminary hyperlink to one of many weapons that ties it to the homicides,” Bryant mentioned.
He appeared in court docket in Illinois on Monday however didn’t enter a plea, however assistant public defender Carie Poirier instructed the decide he meant to plead not responsible.
“We simply need justice,” Misleh mentioned.
“We would like this person who took a lot from, not simply us as a household, however so many extra folks. And clearly the children, particularly. We would like this individual to pay for what they did,” he added.
McKee is charged with two counts of homicide, court docket paperwork state. He’s scheduled to seem in court docket subsequent in Winnebago County, In poor health., on Jan. 23 for an extradition listening to, after which level he will likely be dropped at Columbus to face trial.
