Everything but Murder: 2 of 3 men charged in Chilliwack homicide plead guilty to accessory after, firearms, obstruction

Zoltan Losier, Christopher Meischl to be sentenced in December while Jason Himpfen is likely to face murder of Kris Benson alone

November 12, 2026

Several months after three men were charged with the murder of Kristopher Benson and attempted murder of an unnamed person, two of them pleaded guilty to several serious charges connected to the homicide.

While details have either not yet come out in court or cannot be shared, the pleas by Christopher Ian Meischl and Zoltan Charles Losier suggest a Crown theory the two played accessory roles to the alleged main killer: Jason Himpfen.

Meischl and Losier quietly pleaded guilty several weeks ago to two counts each of accessory after the fact, obstruction of justice, and possession of a firearm contrary to orders. Meischl also pleaded to one count of discharging a firearm into a place under section 244.2 of the criminal code. Losier is charged also with one count of assault and one of possession of a prohibited or restricted firearm with ammunition.

Incidentally, Zoltan Losier is more commonly known in the criminal justice system as Zoltan Meischl, who is apparently at least half brother of Christopher Meischl, according to a source.

Known to police

The murder of 48-year-old Kris Benson occurred inside a house on Mellard Avenue just north of downtown Chilliwack on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. Officers from the Lower Mainland Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) were on the scene quickly and with a couple of days identified the suspected killers. 

On Feb. 18, IHIT investigators, with help from the Lower Mainland Districted Integrated Emergency Response Team (ERT), arrested one of them in Chilliwack and a second in Abbotsford. The third man was arrested the next day at a residence in Chilliwack.

All accused along with Benson are well-known to police and the criminal justice system, although there is no suggestion as of yet the incident is connected to the ongoing gang conflicts in the Lower Mainland.

All three men charged have been held in custody since February. Himpfen and Meischl appeared separately in Chilliwack court on Tuesday (Nov. 10, 2026). The case against Himpfen is in the early stages. He is scheduled for a short appearance to consult legal counsel on Nov. 24.

Meischl is scheduled for a sentencing hearing on Dec. 10 in Chilliwack provincial court on the five charges. Losier’s file is scheduled next for a pre-sentence report in Chilliwack provincial court on Nov. 30.

After Meischl and Losier are sentenced on the new charges, the likely next step will be that the substantive charges of murder and attempted murder will be stayed by Crown.

Accessory to murder could come with life

All the new charges Losier and Meischl face are serious, but depending on the underlying offence prosecutors are connecting to the accessory after the fact charge, a sentence as serious as life in prison is possible. 

Both files list the men pleaded guilty under section 23 of the criminal code, which defines the criminal conduct of accessory after the fact. However, it is not yet clear whether the charges are connected to section 240, which specifically makes accessory after the fact to murder an indictable offence punishable by up to life imprisonment, or section 463, which establishes punishment for accessory after the fact to other offences.

Given that Himpfen faces the sole charges of murder and attempted murder, and both Losier and Meischl face two charges of accessory, it’s possible that both section 240 and 463 will come into play.

Any deal connected to guilty pleas, however, almost certainly will involve sentences much lower than life in prison.

Mellard coincidence

Readers may note that Kristopher Benson was killed on Feb. 15, 2026, the first homicide of the year in Chilliwack, in a home on Mellard Avenue. 

The second and only other homicide of 2026 in Chilliwack was that of Kitty Hayward six days ago, on Nov. 6, 2026. Her husband Kristopher Hayward is charged in her murder. This alleged crime also occurred in a home on Mellard Avenue, which is entirely coincidental to the February incident involving Benson on the same street.

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Paul J. Henderson
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