Fundraiser Set Up For Orphaned Children Found With Slain Dentist Dad And Mom Inside Ohio Home By Samira Asma-Sadeque

Family members have raised tens of thousands of dollars for the children of slain Ohio dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife Monique Tepe nearly a week after the couple’s killings.

Spencer, 37, and Monique, 39, were found fatally shot inside their Columbus, Ohio home on Tuesday, Dec. 30, Columbus police announced at the time.

Their two young children, whose ages have not been publicly announced, were inside the residence. The children were left physically unharmed, but 911 calls made to authorities reveal they appeared to be in grave distress inside the home.

Nearly a week since the killings, family members of the beloved couple have set up a fundraiser for the distraught children.

“They were the proud parents of two beautiful children, and every day they showed up with unwavering love and devotion to their family,” Audrey (Tepe) Mackie, the organizer, wrote in the GoFundMe.

“The abrupt loss of Spencer and Monique has changed daily life in ways that are still unfolding,” she wrote, adding that the funds will be used to “provide stability and care” for the children as well as to assist family members now caring for them.

Audio recordings of a 911 call made by Spencer’s friend from outside their residence reveal the distressed circumstances as he, along with several of Spencer’s co-workers, waited for police to carry out a welfare check — while they could hear the couple’s children in agony inside the home.

During one call, cited by CNN, the concerned friend is heard telling police he could hear the children crying inside the residence.

“I can hear kids inside, and I swear I think I heard one yell,” according to dispatch audio cited by the outlet. “But we can’t get in. At this point, I don’t know if I need to break the door in to get in the house or what.”

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The fundraiser for the Tepes’ children has raised more than $140,000 as of Monday, two days after it was set up.

No person of interest or suspect has been announced in the case.

Police remain tight-lipped about the case, with little information released to the public nearly a week into the investigation.

Columbus police did not respond to PEOPLE’s requests for further information.

Anyone with information is requested to contact the Columbus Police Homicide Unit at (614) 645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at (614) 461-TIPS (8477).