A body found in a Lebanon car fire solved a 32-year-old mystery but raises new questions

When Lebanon Police were called to investigate a blazing 1979 Chrysler New Yorker in the early morning of March 19, tragedy was quickly followed by confusion.

On the passenger side of the vehicle, parked near a Budget Inn, investigators discovered a burned body along with a 9mm pistol, a spent bullet casing, a wig and various items of women's clothing.

Early findings point to suicide, according to police, but an official cause of death in the active investigation has yet to be determined.

There was little pointing to the identity of the vehicle's owner until a sticker that read "property of Khristine Bechard" was found attached to a singed piece of paper, leading authorities to a residence in nearby Camdenton.

DNA analysis and items in the home helped investigators determine that Bechard, 71, who had identified as female for more than 30 years, was formerly known as Stephen E. Winn, a husband, father and Kansas City-area resident who disappeared mysteriously in 1991.

Police said Winn, who was assumed deceased by many relatives and declared dead years ago, adopted the name of former wife, Khristine Winn, following a gender transition.

The fraudulent name change appeared to have gone undetected for two years, when "Khristine Winn" married Robert Bechard in 1993 in Miami, Oklahoma. Robert and Khristine Bechard eventually settled in Camdenton, just 155 miles from the place where Stephen Winn disappeared.

The real Khristine Winn died in 2018 outside Phoenix, Arizona. Lebanon Police Detective Sergeant Kacie Springer, who was able to get into contact with family members, wanted to help bring closure to a painful and complicated situation.

Springer, who described the case as among the "most unique" of her 16 years as an investigator, handled it delicately.

"It took a turn of events which caught us off guard, but didn’t change the fact that we still needed to figure out what occurred," Springer said.

Disappearance and uncertainty

Before assuming the identity of Khristine, Bechard had seven children while married and living in Independence.

The details of the August 1991 disappearance are unclear, as are the motive to take wife Khristine's name while they were both alive. Lebanon police said detectives have yet to find an official missing persons report, but a death certificate for Stephen Winn is documented.

Some family members believed their relative was potentially still alive, but many appear to have moved on.

A woman posting in a social media thread who said she is related to the Winns said her family had "no idea" about many of the details that have recently surfaced from this case.

A private and reclusive life

Investigators combed law enforcement databases and public records trying to find so much as a speeding ticket or mention of former employment for Khristine Bechard — or any connected alias — from the past 30 years.

Their searches were mostly fruitless, but Springer said Khristine Bechard had been issued a driver's license in Illinois with her new identity and had successfully renewed it in recent years.

Robert Bechard, who died at age 87 in 2012, was connected to the future Khristine Bechard just months after the 1991 disappearance of Stephen Winn, according to police.

Khrstine was found to have been a homebody. Robert, who was a member of the U.S. Air Force in World War II, had multiple children and grandchildren and was relatively active in his Lake of the Ozarks town.

According to his obituary, which references his 18 years of marriage to Khristine, Robert was a member of the American Legion and the National Rifle Association. His friends referred to him as "Big Bad Bob."

Khristine Bechard wasn't on social media and, according to police findings and social media comments from people claiming to have lived next two the Bechards' two-bedroom home on Lake Road, she was a reclusive and friendly personality who was often gardening alone in the years following Robert's death.

The investigation found that Bechard sold her Camdenton home days before her death, and many of her belongings were still inside.

Police used the clues from items in the home, including unsent letters, to track down relatives.

Lingering questions and a search for answers

As investigators continue trying to nail down a concrete cause of Bechard's death, they said they have found a series of "random thoughts" written in her home that may have indicated a plan to self-harm. Details from the notes aligned with some of the evidence found in the Chrysler.

Much of Bechard's background is unknown, which made the investigation even more arduous. There are still several questions about her life in Kansas City and the one that followed.

Why leave a sizable family and take on the identity of a wife, while living fewer than three hours away from each other? How did she avoid even a small misstep that might have revealed the false identity? The questions are endless.

Chrissy George, one of Khristine Bechard's adult granddaughters from her former marriage, hopes to find the answers.

The Carthage resident, who helped detectives in their investigation, announced plans this week to start the "True Trauma Podcast" in an attempt to bring light to the mystery that affected her family for more than 30 years.

"I do this with the hope to possibly find answers and possibly even give the smallest amount of closure," George said.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Body found in burning car in Lebanon unearths 30-year-old mystery