Hidden True Crime - 911 Calls Change EVERYTHING | New Evidence in the Monique & Spencer Tepe Case Gives Possible Clues

Episode Date: January 7, 2026

A single 911 call changed everything in the Spencer and Monique Tepe case—and now, for the first time, you can hear it. Newly released audio captures the exact moment fear turns into horror, as a coworker realizes there’s a body inside the Tepe home… while the children are still there. In this episode, we break down the chilling 911 call, new surveillance footage showing a hooded figure near the home during the suspected time of the murders, and photos that reveal how someone could move through the house without forcing entry. With no weapon recovered, unanswered questions about motive, and a possible person of interest now in view, this case is entering a critical new phase—and someone out there knows more than they’re saying. About Hidden True Crime What started as a simple conversation at their dinner table became a captivating podcast. Join the dynamic duo of Dr. John Matthias, a criminal psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, an investigative journalist, as they delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes every week. Their unique perspectives and in-depth analysis offer a fresh take on true crime storytelling. Thank you for your support through sponsorships, subscribing, listening, and becoming a Patreon member at⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/HiddenTrueCrime⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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and images now point to a possible person of interest and reveal what investigators have been racing to piece together behind closed doors. My name is Lauren Matthias, and this is hidden true crime. We have some major updates in the Spencer and Monique Tepe case, and for the first time, the public can truly hear and see what investigators have been dealing with behind the scenes. We now have the 911 audio, newly released surveillance video, and even photos that show a layout of the home and together they are helping put the pieces together on what could have happened inside that house. The entire case broke open because on December 30th, Spencer didn't

show up to work and that alone raised alarms. Spencer was known for being reliable. He was always on time. Even if something came up, he would let someone know. But that morning, there was nothing. No calls, no text and no answers from him or Monique. His boss, Mark Valrose, immediately knew something was wrong and called for a welfare check. Columbus Police Tech 107. I guess. I would like to ask for a wellness check on an individual at their home. Well, I'm currently in the state of Florida.

I'm on vacation, but this individual, Spencer, works with me, and he did not show up to work this morning, and we cannot get a hold of him or his family. He didn't show up to work? Correct. Okay. So do you have medical problems? No, and he's been reliable.

We cannot get in touch with him, his wife, his family, anybody that lives in that house. Okay. So you're in Florida. I'm in Florida. I own the business. I was informed by my employees that he was not at work. And he loves the office. Did you receive information that they may have been involved in an accident?

No, ma'am. I just know that he is the most, like, he loves the office. He is always on time and he would contact us that there is any issues whatsoever. And I just said no house to say this. Like, we're very, very concerned because this is very out of character. And we can't get in touch with his wife, which is probably the more concerning thing. Okay. We will send somebody over as soon as we have an officer available, okay?

Okay. Thank you very much. An officer went to the home, knocked, and got no response. And so with no signs of forced entry, that officer. officer left, but Spencer's friends and coworkers were not willing to just let this go. 911. What's location of your emergency? Okay, what's the emergency there, police or medical?

Maybe both, I guess. I don't know. I'm kind of doing the moment. We had a call out there. They knocked on the front door and back door multiple times and there was no answer. Yeah, no answer. I can hear kids inside, and I swear, I think I heard one yell. But we can't get in.

At this point, I don't know if I need to break the door in or just get in. the house or what? Were you out there when the police is out there? I wasn't. I just got here about five minutes. Okay. All right. Well, we'll send him back out to you. Okay. Thanks. And one of his friends and coworkers, Alex Diddy, drove to the house themselves. And that is where the tone of this case changes completely.

911. What's location of your emergency? We've got several calls on that. What's changed since the last person I talked to? There's a body. There's a body. There's a body. inside? Yeah. Okay, hold on one second. Let me get you on the line with the medic, okay?

Okay? Okay, what's the one on there? There's a body. Our friend wasn't injured his phone. We just did a wellness ship we just came here and he appears dead. There's blood. He's laying next to his bed off of his bed and there's blood. I can't get closer to see more than that.

I'd see more than that. Okay. So you can tell he's opposite. Is it like how to like, you know, does he look like? It doesn't look. I can't look. The one was the last time somebody is...

Like yesterday, I suppose. 37. Did you all use or anything like that? No, no, no, no. Okay. Really young age. Yeah, I understand. Okay.

All right, we're on our way. In that instant, everything changed. Police arrived around 10 a.m. and found Spencer and Monique both shot inside their own home. Their two young children were also inside, physically unharmed, but scared, confused, and unknowingly sitting inside the aftermath of a horrific crime. Police have now also released surveillance footage showing a potential suspect, a hooded person walking near the tepee home during the exact window.

Investigators believe the murder occurred, and that's between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. in the morning. The figure moves calmly. He moves slowly and with seeming purpose. Their face hidden and hands concealed. Right now, this is the only publicly released footage tied to a possible suspect, and it confirms that someone was in that exact area at exactly the time these crimes occurred. It doesn't answer everything, but it tells us that this was likely not random. the person looks like someone with a potential purpose. And one thing is certain, someone was moving through that neighborhood while the crime was happening.

While investigators are using actual crime scene photos, many people online are now looking at real estate photos taken before the TEPI's ever moved into their home. These images show the layout of the home where bedrooms are located, how close rooms are to one another, and how someone could move through that house quietly in the early morning hours. Those layout details are critical for investigators as they reconstruct what happened, who was encountered first, who may have tried to intervene, and how the suspect moved through the home. So let's take a look at the home itself, according to Radfin, where these real estate photos are being looked at.

The property is valued at just over $700,000. It's a four-bedroom, three and a half bathroom house with a basement. Several steps lead from the back patio up to the main level, and all of the bedrooms are located on the top floor. The main back door appears to be glass, but the police reported there was no sign of force entry. So that opens up a few possibilities. Maybe a door was accidentally left unlocked. Maybe the person was let in, or perhaps someone was already inside and lying in wait. We don't know.

if someone had entered the home intentionally, the basement door might have been the more strategic choice as it would make it harder for anyone upstairs to hear a door opening if one was left unlocked. Well, it's unclear whether the home had a full alarm system. It does look like they had a ring doorbell on the front door, which could also explain, though, why someone may have avoided that entry point if they knew that a doorbell camera would be there. police have also confirmed that three nine millimeter shell casings were recovered at the scene. And that matters a lot, three, the number three, because Spencer, as police have said, was shot multiple times. And Munique was also shot.

That means there were likely more shell casings originally at the scene than what police recovered, which raises a huge possibility, or at least a huge question. The shooter may have picked up some of the casings to hide evidence, possibly, and maybe missed a few. That's critical because shell casings can sometimes retain touch DNA and even fingerprints, especially if someone handled them after firing. Those forgotten casings, if they were forgotten, may now be some of the strongest forensic leads in this entire case. And given that Spencer was shot the most amount of times, some experts, as well as some

of you have suggested that he may have been the primary target and that when may have been collateral. But another very possible scenario is this. Spencer may have heard the intruder. He may have confronted them and tried to stop them. In general, it takes more force to bring down an adult male, which could explain why he was shot multiple times. Either way, it strongly suggests to me that this was not random, that there was a purpose, a target. But we do not know. There are also a lot of rumors circulating online about Monique's past divorce filings and her ex-husband. And after actually reviewing those filings, which I did, here's the truth. They don't appear unusual and they don't currently point to any obvious red flags right now

tied to this crime. So this divorce filing is basically a standardized packet that lists every possible category that could apply in any Ohio divorce. And only the sections that actually apply to Monique and her ex-husband have page numbers next to them. So some people online notice that one of the listed categories says child abuse, but there are no pages attached to that section, which means it does not apply to their divorce at all. There were no children involved in that marriage. And then another category that has been getting a lot of attention is labeled standard mutual restraining order. That one caught my eye. That one does have pages attached, but people who have gone through divorces in Ohio have pointed out that this is exactly what it says. It is a standard

routine order that is automatically included during divorce proceedings. It does not mean there was violence, threats, or criminal behavior. So as of right now, there is nothing publicly known that would suggest Monique's ex-husband was involved in what happened. That doesn't mean he isn't being investigated. It just means that until police release any information connecting him to this case, we need to be extremely careful about pointing fingers at someone who has not been named as a person of interest. His name is already being circulated in Facebook groups and on Reddit, but no media outlet has published his name and law enforcement has not identified him publicly. And until that happens, I do think it's important that we tread very carefully here. That being said,

detectives are still asking for any video, photos, doorbell, footings. And so, you know, or tips from the neighborhood between midnight and 9 a.m. on December 30. That's still a very large window. And if you have any information at all to please contact Columbus Police Homicide Unit 614-645-4730, CPD tip line is 614-645-222-8. Central Ohio Crime Stoppers, Anonymous. If you want to leave a tip anonymously. 614-461-8477. Before we wrap up, I also want to share this. Family members have shared that Spencer and Monique's children are now safe and surrounded by relatives who are stepping in to care for them along with their dog, Larry. Monique's brother-in-law, Rob Mesla, who is married to Monique's sister, said that the children are being protected and cared for in

what he describes as a loving hands and that at this time they are largely unaware of what has happened. He shared that they have been with family for the past several days and that their routines are being kept as normal as possible. He said, this is what he said. He said, quote, they were just as happy and unfortunately unaware as they could ever be, end quote, adding that more relatives have been coming together to support them and make sure their needs are being met. Mezla also said he does not believe the children were exposed to the scene inside the home. He said, quote, as far as I know, I don't think that they were, I don't think that they saw

what happened. At least I want to believe that with my heart. So the family has described their loss as being heartbroken, beyond words, calling what happened tragic and senseless. I still see, you know, these images of Spencer, pictures that people are sending me. It's like he's not gone. There's no way he's gone. There's no way money's gone like that.

That can't be possible. Rob Mizlah says Spencer and Monique Teppie were two of the most admirable people in his life. Their family and the nation stunned as all lies remain on the investigation. And she just started hyperventilating and it took took a minute to figure out, you know, what was happening. And then from there it was just like kind of an instant realization that all, All of our entire lives are never going to be the same again. The TEPPs would have celebrated their five-year wedding anniversary in just a few weeks. Mizzla says their children, four and one, are in good care of family, along with their family dog.

How do you tell four-year-old that, you know, she's never going to see your parents again? It's just awful, but we've, you know, we've been giving them all of our love. Misla describing Monique as warm, charming, and strong. Spencer, known as calm, steady and kind. With funeral arrangements in the works, investigators following the case closely. No interview was made available to ABC 6 on Monday. We'd rather have it done right instead of fast,

and we understand that these kind of things are processed and there's a lot of moving parts and pieces. A loving couple, two young children left behind, with plenty of unanswered. questions. And what is your message to the person behind this? This person didn't just take two lives, right? They took a son and a daughter, a brother and a sister, and an aunt and an uncle, cousins.

And they obviously took two beautiful souls who are lovely parents. A fundraiser has been created to help support the children. has already raised more than $160,000 to assist with their care and future needs. This case is very much active. And with new audio, new video, and physical evidence now in play, this investigation is gaining momentum. Someone out there, someone out there knows something. And we'll keep bringing up any updates as they come in. Most people don't realize how much their personal information is being bought and sold. every day. Data brokers are making billions, pulling details about you from public records and the

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