Kriti Mehrotra
When a homemade bomb went off at the Magyar Kozmetika spa shortly after 1 pm on May 15, 2018, the entire tight-knit community of Orange County, California, was left absolutely shaken to the core. That’s because, as carefully chronicled in NBC’s ‘Dateline: Death at the Spa,’ it not only killed 48-year-old co-owner Ildiko Krajnyak but also permanently injured a mother-daughter duo who were clients. What ensued was an extensive investigation for justice, ultimately leading to the federal arrest, indictment, trial, conviction, and sentencing of the late woman’s former boyfriend, Stephen William Beal.
Stephen Beal’s First Wife Died Under Mysterious Circumstances
A proud native of Long Beach, Los Angeles County, Stephen William Bealhad reportedly managed to build a secure, stable life for himself and his little family by the time the early 2000s rolled around. According to records, he had tied the knot with a woman named Christine Beal when they were both relatively young, just for them to settle down in their hometown before welcoming four loving children. While he provided for them through his then-rising career as an executive consultant, his wife primarily took care of the household — so, as per their kids, they truly had a strong, compatible marriage.
However, everything changed for them on February 16, 2008, when 48-year-old Christine fell while carrying a heavy table down a flight of stairs alongside her husband to prepare for their eviction. They had allegedly been asked to leave their home following a financial foreclosure, only for the mother of four to end up dead from the hard fall despite being in “the best shape of her life.” According to records, the couple had lost their balance, with the matriarch slipping through curved, carpeted stairs before the table landed on her abdomen and her husband on top of them both.
Steven allegedly took Christine to several doctors in the days to follow since she was in “excruciating pain,” but after days of fatigue, vomiting, and other symptoms, she passed away in a hospital. It was March 8, 2008. Her autopsy ascertained her cause of death as pancreatitis, but the manner was ruled undetermined because toxicology tests revealed she had 4 times the normal lead in her bloodstream. The fact that he allegedly refused to cooperate with investigators when they inquired about her medical background later didn’t help alleviate the rising suspicion surrounding him.
Stephen Beal Was The Lead Suspect in His Girlfriend’s Murder
Despite Christine’s “mysterious death” and the hypothesis that it could have likely been a result of lead poisoning, Stephen was never once arrested in connection with the matter. That’s because the autopsy concluded her death was “probably natural,” there was no evidence against him, and even their kids believed he could never be responsible for such an act. In the end, following a lawsuit after his insurance company refused to deliver benefits — he had filed a claim under their accidental death policy 8 months after the incident — he was awarded $550,000 on March 1, 2011.
As the years passed, Stephen moved on, went on disability, and tried to expand his wings as an actor, but as per the episode, he spent more money taking lessons than he earned from landing roles. He even moved forward on a personal level as he came across Ildiko Krajnyak on a dating app in 2016, just for them to soon fall head over heels in love despite her being a married mother of one. They reportedly had such a whirlwind romance that he got involved in her business too — he essentially became her partner and helped her out at Magyar Kozmetika day spa whenever he could.
Therefore, when it came to light that Stephen was at home when the homemade bomb went off in the spa on May 15, 2018, not long after he and Ildiko had broken up, he became the prime suspect. Investigators subsequently executed search warrants, asked his new partner to wear a wire in the hopes of catching a confession, and more, but his financial records are what became his downfall. He had bought nine-volt batteries as well as a cardboard box in the days preceding the incident, and the explosion had happened after Ildiko had opened a similar box, resulting in his arrest in 2019.
Stephen Beal is Currently Serving a Life Term in a Federal Facility
When Stephen eventually stood trial for the charges against him in connection with Ildiko’s murder, the defense argued his purchases were completely valid. They asserted the batteries were the same kind they usually used in the spa, and the cardboard box was because the defendant was remodeling his home. However, the prosecutors painted a different picture with the help of these purchases as well as his phone records, which indicated he was still hung up on his ex, even after starting a new relationship. One of his texts from late April even read, “Building a relationship with you is the single most important period of my life. Ildico, you rock my world. You are the woman that I’ve always dreamed of. I will love you forever.”
Ultimately, following a four-week trial, a federal jury found Stephen guilty of four charges. He was convicted of use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death, malicious destruction of a building resulting in death, use of a destructive device during & in relation to a crime of violence, and possession of an unregistered destructive device in July 2023. Around six months later, on January 19, 2024, he was sentenced to life in prison, plus an additional 30 years for his hand in the matter. Later, he also pleaded guilty to wire fraud-related charges in an unrelated case, for which he was handed down an additional term. So, today, at the age of 66, he is incarcerated at the high-security United States Penitentiary-Victorville in California, where he is expected to remain for the rest of his natural life.
Read More: Ildiko Krajnyak Murder Details and Investigation Timeline
