ASHLAND — A surgeon who allegedly killed his ex-wife and her husband — a former Ashland dentist — was extradited from Illinois and is now in jail in Columbus, according to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.
Michael McKee, 39, was indicted on four counts of aggravated murder and one count of aggravated burglary in relation to the deaths of Spencer and Monique Tepe on Friday in the Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
No plea was entered for the charges against McKee at the time of this story’s publication.
Spencer Tepe had worked at Stonecreek Dental Care in Ashland for eight years before recently transferring to Columbus, where he was employed at Athens Dental Depot.
Stonecreek Dental employees declined to offer comment to Ashland Source about Spencer Tepe, but Mary Jo Janchar, a former patient of Tepe’s, was eager to share her experience with him.
“Most people hate going to the dentist but HE made it fun,” Janchar wrote in an email to Ashland Source. “He had a personality that lit up a room, and we ALL loved it when he brought Larry, his big, black doodle dog to work.
“Dr. Tepe was very thorough and precise about his work. He was always excellent in explaining dental options to his patients. He was so happy when he married, and more so when his first child was born, then his second,” she said.
“I consider myself privileged to have been his patient, known him and shared many jokes and laughter over the years. Losing him and his beloved wife has tremendously saddened and angered me.”
Janchar
“I consider myself privileged to have been his patient, known him and shared many jokes and laughter over the years. Losing him and his beloved wife has tremendously saddened and angered me,” Janchar wrote.
Sonya Carpenter also responded to an Ashland Source Facebook post asking for comment from Ashland residents who knew Tepe.
Carpenter said Spencer Tepe, along with two other Stonecreek Dental employees, stood along Ashland streets to pay respect to Carpenter’s son, Sargent Riley D. Carpenter, who was killed in a car accident with his girlfriend on July 16, 2022.
Riley Carpenter, A 2017 Mapleton High School graduate, was returning home on a road trip after a five-year U.S. Marines term in San Diego, California.
“When we brought Riley home on Aug. 2, 2022, from the Cleveland Airport, the city asked the community to show the respect and line the streets at 8 a.m. on a Tuesday morning,” Sonya Carpenter wrote in an email.
“Dr. Tepe was right there with them. That shows what a caring and compassionate person he was! It is such a senseless tragedy what happened to him and Monique. I pray for their kids and families,” she said.
Dianne Frost Owens also commented on an Ashland Source Facebook post: “Dr. Tepe was my dentist for several years when he was at Stonecreek Dental. Very nice young man & very good dentist,” she said.
Julie Rodabaugh and Michelle Clark, employees at Stonecreek Dental, told 10 WBNS: “He just had a happy presence about him all the time.”
They both noted Spencer Tepe had a loud laugh that filled the rooms. Even after Tepe left the Ashland office last summer, the three all kept in touch, according to the 10TV interview.
Spencer and Monique Tepe are survived by their two children, a 4-year-old girl and a 1-year-old-boy, who were found alive and unharmed in a separate room of the Tepe’s house, the scene of the crime.
The duo, and the Tepe’s dog are being cared for by family members, according to multiple published reports.
There is no court date listed for McKee yet.
