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available with turbo tax. Live. Mark.

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I'm Michelle. eighty up agents arrived

0:33

within the past area. Might be

0:35

able to see that in the

0:37

distance. There they are joined by

0:39

the F B I. They were

0:41

called her by the Orange County

0:43

Sheriff's Department to assist in this

0:46

investigation. Authorities say that this call

0:48

came in just after one o'clock

0:50

this afternoon. The explosion just shook

0:52

the area businesses. The actual building

0:54

where the explosion took place was

0:56

eleven, mirror blue and out. again.

0:58

Witnesses described it as shaking the

1:00

windows. people. Who got up to

1:02

look outside their office windows nearby

1:04

described seeing flames. This blast killed

1:07

one person. That body according to

1:09

authorities, was found inside the building

1:11

where the explosion happened. That building

1:14

we're told is a medical building

1:16

fully operational. Three others suffered injuries.

1:18

The injuries the condition of the

1:21

to are still not known. One

1:23

did. One of the three did

1:25

suffer smoke inhalation Authority said that

1:28

they will be interviewing those people

1:30

as as witnesses. One

1:32

all five Pm On May Fifteenth,

1:35

Two thousand and Eighteen an explosion

1:37

ripped through a commercial building and

1:39

alyssa be a whole California about

1:41

fifty miles or eighty kilometers south

1:43

of Los Angeles. Explosions in

1:45

commercial spaces could happen for a

1:47

number of reasons depending on the

1:49

type of businesses operating. mm. Not.

1:52

Unlike residential properties, their can also be

1:54

a gas leak that can lead to

1:57

explosions happening. Due. to this

1:59

explosion caused At death and numerous injuries,

2:01

authorities began investigating the incident to make

2:03

sure they weren't dealing with a crime

2:05

and when they found explosives at the

2:07

scene, they quickly knew they were dealing

2:10

with a murder. This

2:12

is Monsters. Jonathan

2:59

The spa

3:12

was located in a commercial office building

3:14

that housed a number of other businesses

3:16

such as a chiropractor, a masseuse, and

3:19

a bankruptcy lawyer. Two customers,

3:21

a mother and daughter, were in the

3:23

spa with El Dico having just finished

3:25

up their treatments. As they

3:27

went to the front counter to pay, they saw El

3:29

Dico pick up a package from a pile of mail

3:32

and tear it open. As soon

3:34

as she did, it exploded, destroying

3:36

the inside of the office and

3:38

sending flames and smoke everywhere. Shattered

3:41

glass covered everything. The surrounding

3:44

offices were damaged with the neighboring

3:46

chiropractor's office also destroyed. The two

3:48

women were knocked to the ground

3:50

before running out of the building.

3:52

They were later treated for burns and

3:55

lacerations, which made them lucky as the

3:57

explosion instantly killed El Dico. body

4:00

would be found inside the office and as

4:02

far away as the parking lot. As

4:05

police arrived on the scene, people from

4:07

nearby offices were running to safety. A

4:10

preschool from across the street evacuated and

4:12

took the children to a nearby Target

4:14

store where their parents could pick them

4:16

up. Due to the

4:18

idea that explosives could be involved,

4:20

federal investigators were brought in and

4:23

they found a 9-volt battery which

4:25

was embedded in the ceiling, a

4:27

cell phone, melted duct tape and

4:29

some wires. It was

4:31

confirmed that Eldeco had been the victim of

4:33

a package bomb but nobody knew who would

4:35

want the friendly spa owner dead. We

4:38

do not believe at this time that this

4:40

was an accident. We

4:42

believe the victim is Eldeco

4:45

Krasniak, 40 years old

4:47

from Chibiko Canyon. Eldeco

4:49

is believed to be the owner of

4:51

the day spa. The

4:53

injured victims are recovering at a hospital,

4:56

they're currently undergoing surgery and

4:58

are expected to survive. Investigators

5:00

are still working to confirm whether or not this

5:02

was an intentional act. We

5:05

are, however, investing in this as a crime

5:08

and Sheriff's Homicide is the lead

5:10

investigator in this case. We

5:12

do not know the motive behind the case at this time.

5:16

Three search warrants were served earlier this morning,

5:19

one at the business on Maribleau, one

5:22

in the city of Long Beach and one in

5:24

Chibiko Canyon. At this

5:26

time there are no arrests, we

5:29

can't confirm or deny what she's

5:31

targeted. We do know that an explosion happened at

5:33

the location, the investigation is ongoing

5:35

and we will try to determine motive. That

5:38

question was answered when investigators heard about

5:41

Steven Beal, a 64 year

5:43

old retired management consultant who not

5:45

only had recently broken up with

5:47

Eldeco but was also a partial

5:49

owner of her spa business. On

5:52

top of that, Steven's favorite hobby

5:54

was building and launching large scale

5:57

model rockets along with homemade pyrotechnics.

6:00

I could tell you more about him, but it

6:02

seems he can tell you himself. Hi,

6:05

I'm Stephen Beal. This is my

6:08

video submission for The Real Deal. I designed this

6:10

to let us get a little better acquainted in

6:12

90 seconds. I

6:16

was married for 27 years. I

6:19

have four children and I

6:21

have two young granddaughters. And

6:24

I've recently started dating a wonderful woman and

6:26

I'm really excited to see where that

6:29

journey ends. I

6:32

made this pic. Also,

6:36

I'm a man of faith. I'm active

6:38

in my church and

6:40

I'm active with a lot of

6:42

volunteer projects. My

6:45

closest friend is also named Steve, by

6:47

the way. When we met,

6:49

we were freshmen in high school and we still

6:51

keep in contact. I've conferred

6:53

dogs to kids. In

6:55

fact, I've had a dog

6:58

as a part of the family for almost my

7:00

entire life. What

7:03

about acting, you ask? I'm

7:05

passionate about my acting. I train

7:07

at the Burke Studios with one of the

7:09

most influential teachers that I have ever met.

7:12

I'm also currently in rehearsal for Arsenic

7:14

and Old Life. I'm playing Dr. Einstein.

7:18

I've been cast in a lot of indie stuff, some

7:20

of which is filmed in some houses. I

7:22

believe, though, that an actor has to have a

7:24

voice outside of the camera. It

7:27

illuminates me. But also, it illuminates her. And

7:29

so that's it. That's the end of

7:32

my tune. 90 seconds really goes fast.

7:38

Steven fancied himself an actor and

7:40

made a biography video along with

7:42

a demo reel. You

7:44

know, I thought that your competition would block taking a

7:46

handout from me to secure this job for you. I

7:48

call it more than a handout. I'm very grateful for

7:50

everything that you've done. I just

7:52

never thought the same about you. A

8:01

Brian: could you get all those the I boxes

8:04

put away Please And on? What's the ribbon like

8:06

plays with disgust at that from the shop. In.

8:09

Two thousand and sixteen. Stephen in L

8:11

D Go had met on Tinder and

8:14

they spent the next few years traveling

8:16

and spending time together. Steve it had

8:18

become a partner at her business, but

8:20

it seems as though by two thousand

8:22

and eighteen their relationship was beginning to

8:24

sour. He'll be Go wanted to see

8:27

other people and Stephen was jealous he

8:29

be there was also not doing great

8:31

financially which may have become a burden

8:33

on Steve and know their finances aren't

8:35

really detailed outside of some documents showing

8:37

a bankruptcy on your details. Park. Investigators.

8:41

Got a warrant to search Stevens house.

8:43

In there, they sound a number of

8:45

explosive components. There were one hundred and

8:48

thirty pounds of explosive chemicals, as well

8:50

as electric matches and wires. When.

8:52

Steven was interviewed. A couple of

8:54

members of the bomb squad asked

8:56

him about his experience with explosives.

8:59

A password which know your

9:02

knowledge. Okay, so. I

9:05

lost without all comes from

9:07

rock and at one point

9:10

thought about perhaps getting making

9:12

my own like I never

9:15

actually did say I ordered

9:17

the random them. Are

9:21

you ever. Met a

9:23

coloring chemical. Don't

9:25

remember what they are on the

9:27

auction stuff, but it's like looking

9:30

at this than going an. Interesting

9:33

settling with. Ah,

9:36

And I had. Gotten.

9:39

American Fireworks News or something

9:41

like that. I had a

9:43

subscription monthly subscription to that

9:45

and have fun in. I

9:47

could join that club that

9:49

fills fireworks. And. On.

9:53

That I mean like watching mortars like that

9:55

area of. Them

9:57

there's more to make Moore's which

9:59

I never actually the around making

10:01

mortars have a data types of

10:03

the the stars so guess when

10:05

he never got around to making

10:07

remorse and made my own like

10:09

Teller? Okay I'm. In a

10:11

in the garage doors of it's still there

10:14

but the used to be like of right

10:16

toddler like ball built in time and I

10:18

was used to make the black powder so

10:20

I put the chemicals in there is rich

10:23

with all the waters little tumble for a

10:25

of like a week or whatever and that

10:27

I only remember the process is more blessed

10:30

and then and then you know we would

10:32

make like fountains and. Stuff

10:34

like that out of it. But

10:37

after nine eleven is like I

10:39

don't see more. does not really.

10:41

A politically good climate for. Fiscal.

10:44

To Egypt. And all the

10:47

trouble. He claimed that

10:49

he stopped making homemade fireworks after

10:51

Nine Eleven because the political climate

10:53

wasn't good. He then claimed the

10:55

chemicals that were sailed had been

10:57

there since then. Detectives.

10:59

Continue talking to Stephen about the

11:01

details surrounding his involvement with L

11:04

D. Go into business. He. Was

11:06

during that interview that he revealed

11:08

himself to be possibly the most

11:10

pompous, arrogant person I've ever covered.

11:13

Valerie look to the it

11:15

yesterday. And were

11:17

talking about you know, like life goal.

11:21

Immediate like all right now is to

11:23

get to the point where we look

11:25

at this particular set of events and

11:27

can joke about it because we think

11:29

it's lush and it's not. And

11:32

then she said she says, you know. Actually,

11:35

when you get past all. You

11:38

need to do just stand up comedy routine.

11:42

Cause. There's a lot of really. Potentially

11:45

humorous anecdotes that are.

11:48

Wrapped up in the most intense

11:50

like situation. And

11:53

in of the audience can relate to

11:55

to what you're going through and this

11:57

delivered him in a humorous manner. You

11:59

know you know when an even if

12:01

I come out of the on the

12:04

and it is a luxury says she's

12:06

not guilty or whatever you know. This

12:10

court of public Opinion is not

12:12

going to be at least we're

12:14

here on hundred percent. Whatever decision

12:16

you. As as

12:18

she tries to stand up comedy routine without

12:21

the last. People

12:23

people love. To

12:26

be entertained. He seems to

12:29

enjoy spending his time talking to investigators

12:31

about the rockets he's built in the

12:33

screenplays working on. Basically, he seems to

12:36

love to talk about himself, and you

12:38

can tell he thinks he's the smartest

12:40

guy in the room, but he isn't

12:42

as displayed here. By. Back

12:44

to something you just mentioned. talk about

12:47

the size of the package that sure

12:49

our to have opened and in order

12:51

to thunder kind of damage on why

12:54

would you siro the Packers issue of

12:56

it. Because. It's in the news

12:58

reports. That. She opened the package.

13:01

It said it was package. Is

13:03

at the only way that package to be

13:05

can be. Utilized. I.

13:10

Don't I know? I I suppose

13:12

that houses. The. Timer In

13:14

there are a cellphone or. Something.

13:16

New. it. Uses. Of trigger it.

13:21

Is. Just package for me.

13:23

These. You. Open it.

13:25

And I mean that's my assumption when I get

13:28

a package in the eye opener. Other

13:33

now, I do. I.

13:35

Don't know. How did

13:37

you just said that? I just

13:40

didn't have much as. Far

13:44

as simple as. Me,

13:47

my smart or sign, had

13:49

made that assumption in your

13:51

sleep on a service losses

13:53

that with a source material

13:55

I were mercer I do.

13:59

Infant. It was a package that she opened. I

14:04

mean it said she was in close

14:06

proximity to it. You

14:11

know, it was a package. I opened packages. It's

14:14

one of the highlights of my day to get a package. Steven

14:18

slipped up and talked about the package that

14:20

Eldiko opened and the investigators wanted to know

14:22

how he knew it was a package. He

14:25

said it was in the news, but it's not clear

14:27

if he really heard about the package in the news

14:29

or not. I found a news

14:31

clip from just after they started reporting

14:33

that the bomb was a package, but

14:35

I'm not sure what time that aired

14:38

in relation to when Steven was being

14:40

interviewed. But even then

14:42

he's kind of specific about talking about

14:44

her opening the package which definitely feels

14:46

like he knows more about it than

14:48

he should. It could have easily

14:50

just been a bomb in a package with a

14:52

timer. Why is he so sure she

14:54

opened it? Because that's the

14:56

way he designed it. The

14:58

authorities arrested Steven and charged him

15:00

with possessing an unregistered destructive device,

15:03

but he wasn't charged with anything

15:05

related to the murder of his

15:07

ex-girlfriend. The chemicals found

15:09

were commonly used to build rockets

15:11

and legally didn't qualify as destructive

15:13

devices, so it wasn't long before

15:15

the district attorney dropped the charges

15:17

against him. But that didn't

15:20

mean investigators were done. They

15:22

were still putting the pieces together to charge

15:24

him with the murder of Eldiko Kroniak. I

15:27

mean, his ex-girlfriend had just been tilled

15:29

with a homemade bomb and he just

15:32

happened to conveniently have a bunch of

15:34

explosive ingredients in his house. Putting

15:37

those pieces together wasn't rocket science.

15:40

As they dug, more suspicions arose that

15:43

Steven was a killer, but these didn't

15:45

have anything to do with Eldiko. It

15:48

turned out that Steven's wife, Christine Beale,

15:50

had died mysteriously in 2008. According

15:54

to Steven, they had been moving furniture when she

15:56

fell down a flight of stairs and a table

15:59

landed on her shoulder. stomach. It

16:01

seemed she survived for a little while

16:03

and then died three weeks later. During

16:06

her autopsy, it was discovered

16:08

that her cause of death

16:10

was pancreatitis, electrolyte imbalance, and

16:12

chronic lead intoxication and the

16:15

medical examiner ruled her death

16:17

undetermined. The insurance company

16:19

that held her life insurance policy initially

16:21

denied the claim stating they did not

16:23

believe her death was an accident, so

16:25

Stevens sued them and won $350,000. A

16:30

report written by the medical examiner

16:32

after Christine's death said that Stephen

16:34

was uncooperative and didn't want to

16:37

give hospital staff information about his

16:39

wife. There wasn't much

16:41

that authorities could do about that case,

16:43

but for the bombing, they painstakingly tested

16:45

the chemicals used in the package bomb

16:47

as well as the wiring found at

16:49

the scene. Unsurprisingly, they

16:51

matched the chemicals and wires found

16:54

at Stevens' house. Surveillance

16:56

footage at a nearby CVS pharmacy

16:58

showed Stephen using cash to purchase

17:00

a 9-volt battery just six days

17:03

before the bombing. Not

17:05

only that, but that specific type of battery

17:07

had only been in production for two months,

17:10

making it that much less likely that someone

17:12

else had just happened to have purchased the

17:14

exact same type of battery for the bomb.

17:17

He had also purchased three cardboard boxes

17:19

that matched the size and shape of

17:22

the package seen by the two customers

17:24

before the explosion. People

17:26

close to Ildiko said that she had

17:28

expressed concern about Stephen telling them that

17:31

he was controlling and jealous. She

17:33

told them that he had made threats against her.

17:36

He was arrested again in March

17:38

of 2019. He was

17:40

charged with malicious destruction of a

17:42

building that included death. Investigators

17:45

believe that Stephen, who had keys

17:47

to the spa, left the package

17:49

in the business while Ildiko was

17:51

out of town while she visited

17:53

family in Hungary. She had

17:55

just returned from that trip when the

17:57

bombing occurred. Cell phone local

18:00

records show that he went to the spa

18:02

multiple times while she was out of town.

18:05

Computer records also showed that he

18:07

was keeping tabs on her by

18:09

regularly visiting her social media and

18:11

an online scheduling app she used.

18:14

Despite the overwhelming evidence against

18:16

him, Steven maintained his innocence.

18:19

During the trial, the prosecution laid out

18:21

the means, the motive, and the opportunity

18:23

that Steven had to commit the crime.

18:26

Still, a jury was deadlocked and

18:29

the judge declared a mistrial. Any

18:31

hope that Steven would have of getting

18:33

away with murder was erased during the

18:35

second trial where, after 90 minutes of

18:38

deliberation, the jury found him guilty. The

18:41

judge sentenced Steven Beal to life

18:43

plus an additional 30 years in

18:45

federal prison. Federal prison has no

18:47

parole so he will never be

18:49

released. Steven Beal

18:51

murdered his ex-girlfriend in one

18:54

of the most depraved and despicable

18:56

ways possible. He blew

18:58

her up in the business

19:00

she owned, a salon, using

19:02

a bomb disguised as a

19:04

mail package. In

19:07

the process, he also severely injured

19:09

two other people, customers

19:11

in the salon who were

19:13

there preparing for a wedding. They

19:16

will have to live with the trauma from

19:18

this event for the rest of their lives.

19:22

This murderous act was

19:24

not only callous, not

19:26

only cowardly, but incredibly

19:29

reckless. He

19:31

endangered the lives of everyone in the building

19:33

he blew up, which included people

19:35

and businesses. He endangered

19:37

a daycare center, which is across the way,

19:40

which had to be evacuated. Children and

19:42

teachers evacuated that day. But

19:45

Mr. Beal did not care. He

19:48

didn't care about any of it. In

19:50

fact, he did everything he

19:52

could to avoid being

19:54

caught. He lied

19:57

to investigators. He

19:59

thought he'd outsmarted. he

20:02

thought with his superior expertise in

20:04

bomb making and rocketry he

20:06

could get away with this, but

20:09

he was sorely mistaken. Not

20:11

only will Steven spend the rest of

20:14

his life in prison, but he has

20:16

also pleaded guilty to wire fraud, social

20:18

security fraud and concealment of bankruptcy assets.

20:21

Steven failed to report the $350,000 insurance

20:24

payout that he received after his

20:26

wife's murder, uh, I mean, death.

20:29

He also scammed the social security system out of

20:31

$1.3 million in disability payments. So

20:36

not only is Steven Beal a

20:38

horrible murdering monster, he's also a

20:40

sleazy scam artist. If

20:43

you're the victim of domestic abuse, please reach out

20:45

to someone for help. Please talk

20:47

to your local shelter or call the National

20:49

Domestic Abuse Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE. That's

20:53

1-800-799-7233 or you can go to thehotline.org to chat with

20:55

someone online. This

21:01

website is set up so that at any time

21:03

hitting the escape key twice will take you to

21:05

a Google search page. That way if

21:07

your abuser is nearby you won't get caught seeking

21:09

help. If you're having feelings

21:12

of harming yourself or someone else or even

21:14

just need someone to talk to, please contact

21:16

your local mental health facility, call 911 or

21:19

call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline by

21:21

simply dialing 988 in the United States.

21:24

They're available 24 hours a day, 7 days a

21:26

week and we'll talk to you about any mental

21:28

health issue you may be facing. If

21:31

you are a member of the LGBTQ

21:33

plus community and suffering from discrimination, depression,

21:35

or are in need of any support,

21:37

please contact the LGBT National Hotline at

21:40

1-888-843-4564 or

21:44

go to lgbthotline.org. Thanks

21:47

so much for letting me tell you this

21:49

story. If you enjoyed it, subscribe on whatever

21:51

platform you're on. Hit like, rate us, or

21:53

leave us a comment. You can check out

21:55

our other show Somewhere Sinister on YouTube or

21:57

anywhere you listen to podcasts. To

22:00

support the show, check out our merchandise

22:02

at thisismonsters.com. The link is in

22:04

the description. Thanks again and be safe.