LOS ANGELES (CN) – Authorities on Thursday arrested the business partner of a woman killed in an explosion that tore through her spa in an Orange County office building this week.
Stephen Beal, 59, of Long Beach, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of being in possession of an unregistered destructive device, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.
“During the course of the investigation into the May 15 explosion in Aliso Viejo, investigators found a destructive device during the service of a search warrant at a Long Beach residence,” Eimiller said.
At this time, Beal is not being charged in connection with Tuesday’s blast that killed Ildiko Krajnyak, 48, a beautician who owned a day spa called Magyar Kozmetika.
Beal was expected to appear in federal court in Santa Ana on Thursday, but that appearance was delayed until Monday afternoon. A criminal complaint filed Thursday afternoon includes the possession of an unregistered destructive device charge and details that a search of Beal's home revealed two completed improvised explosive devices, precursor chemicals, rocket tubes and e-matches.
He will remain in custody until at least Monday and will not be asked to enter a plea at that time, according to U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Thom Mrozek.
On his website, Beal describes himself as an executive consultant turned actor.
Photos on Beal's Facebook page show him with Krajnyak on vacation trips to Cuba and Mexico. In other photos, the pair is sitting together on the beach and riding jet skis.
Beal listed Krajnyak as the chief executive officer of a skin care company he founded last year, according to paperwork filed with the California secretary of state last month.
Beal’s company, I and S Enterprises, is based in the same building where the explosion occurred.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department tweeted Thursday that officers continue to investigate any connection Beal may have with the explosion.
Shortly after 1 p.m. Tuesday, a powerful blast ripped through offices, shattering windows and setting of car alarms throughout the Orange County community.
Upon arrival, firefighters reported major damage to the building and evacuated more than 100 children from a nearby preschool as a precaution.
Two female patrons who were inside the spa at the time of the explosion sustained injuries requiring surgery, and one other person was treated for smoke inhalation.
At a news conference Wednesday, officials from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that it appears the explosion was set off in a deliberate act.
It was “not an accident,” FBI spokesman Paul Delacourt said.
“At this point, our working theory is that this explosion was caused by a device, and although the damage was extensive, there are some components that we have located at the scene that are inconsistent with what one might expect to find at this business,” Delacourt said.
Authorities served search warrants at three locations, including one in Long Beach.
Remnants of an explosive device were found inside the spa after the blast.
It remains unclear how the device was delivered. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service in a statement Wednesday said the “package in question did not go through the Postal Service mail system.”
Pieces of the explosive device recovered were sent to the FBI's laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, to be analyzed, Delacourt said.
Irene White, a friend of the victim’s family, told reporters outside Krajnyak’s home in Trabuco Canyon Wednesday the news of the tragedy came as a complete shock to friends and family.
“We are in complete support of law enforcement. Family always came first to Ildiko. We would like to privately mourn a mother, wife, daughter and friend.”
Krajnyak, originally from Hungary, and her estranged husband were in the process of losing their home to foreclosure, according to court records.
A Gofundme account was established by friends of the family to help Krajnyak’s son, a student at University of Washington, Seattle, get home.
Subscribe to Closing Arguments
Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.
