The court saga evolved into a battle of wills between a father--a man who wouldn't even let the Vatican tell him what to do--and his oldest son, determined to break free from the old man's grasp. Christopher Gardner The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Even though all the lights were out, she told police that she knew it was Matthew "because the moonlight shined into the room through the large windows that faced the ocean." His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. When Vice President Al Gore called to personally invite the elder Bumb to a fundraiser at the Los Altos home of real estate magnate George Marcus, Bumb put the VP on hold for several minutes, ultimately making Betsy take the call. At one point in the investigation, sheriff's detectives had Jeff's daughter call Matthew while he was working at the Flea Market to confirm the sexual activities. Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. "I'm a big boy." One of George Bumb Sr.'s granddaughters explained to police that her family was very old-fashioned: "The woman gets the short end of the deal; she is a whore. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. Hamilton, where Latin mass is conducted on a regular basis. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) Jeff entertained offers to buy the club, the highest bid, he recalls, coming in at $40 million. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. Just so everyone got the point, Jeff Bumb announced to the press that he and Brian were divesting from Bay 101, and records show he eventually sold his shares for $1.4 million. Bumb family attorney Ron Werner suggested that Jeff and his family had a hidden motive for waiting nearly a month to report the incident to police. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. On weekends he'd bring his wife and a few of his 10 kids down there, too. `He drives by every day on his way to his Maverick Consulting development business in Mountain View, but he never gets off the Brokaw/First Street exit to pay a visit. Bay 101 was Jeff's idea--no one disputes that. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. "I'm a big boy." It's like we had no life except for the family." Eight days after the molestation incident was reported to police--and one day after Jeff Bumb formally refused his father's $6.9 million buyout offer--George Bumb Sr. sent Jeff a curt typewritten memo informing Jeff that he was terminated effective immediately and had to clean out his desk before 5pm. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. One of George Bumb Sr.'s granddaughters explained to police that her family was very old-fashioned: "The woman gets the short end of the deal; she is a whore. As a compromise of sorts, he was debating whether he should apply for a license as a gaming-club manager instead of as an owner. But his dream, which now seemed so close to being a reality, was about to become a nightmare. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. You think this didn't break my heart?" EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." Tim and George, under pressure from then Police Chief Lou Cobarruviaz, had already signed an agreement a year earlier that prohibited Brian, Jeff and their father from having anything to do with the card room. Though authorities were never able to prove a paid snuff plot, Jeff Bumb believes the allegations were a factor contributing to authorities' mistrust of him. You think this didn't break my heart?" FROM THE START, Jeff's three brothers and father didn't share his enthusiasm for opening a lavish gaming house. "And when I visited you at your home I told you that other than God you are the only person I've gotten down on my knees for," Venzon says on page 7. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. "I liked my name," he maintains. "I mean," Jeff later said at a deposition, "it was a time of hurt and heartache for us--and not my father, not my mother, not my brother George, not my brother Tim, not Brian could care less." The investigation was given a shot in the arm after the arrest of Johnny Venzon in 1997, a cop who made headlines for burglarizing homes while on duty to pay for his mounting gambling debts. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. Tim and George Jr. worried that pressuring state and city officials to deal Jeff back in at Bay 101 would backfire and authorities would close down the card room. Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. "I mean," Jeff later said at a deposition, "it was a time of hurt and heartache for us--and not my father, not my mother, not my brother George, not my brother Tim, not Brian could care less." Tim and George Jr. worried that pressuring state and city officials to deal Jeff back in at Bay 101 would backfire and authorities would close down the card room. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. But Jeff and his family started hearing that instead of showing concern and support for his daughter, George Bumb Sr. and others in the family were blaming his freshman daughter for the incident and not her adult-age cousin. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. "They didn't teach anything about this. In a statement to police, Jeff's daughter recounted how the first incident had happened the year before on the Fourth of July at a family beach house near Santa Cruz when the older boy allegedly started fondling her while she was asleep on the living room couch. The card club has done more than bring unwanted public scrutiny to this insular group. Of the four brothers, Tim and George had faced the least resistance from state gaming officials. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. He asked longtime family attorney Ron Werner if his brothers could write a recommendation letter for him, something state officials had told him he would need to be considered eligible for a gaming license. At one point in the investigation, sheriff's detectives had Jeff's daughter call Matthew while he was working at the Flea Market to confirm the sexual activities. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. "It made you tough, made you get a thick skin." And then police remembered the old rumors about a murder plot at the Flea Market, where Venzon had worked as a security guard for more than 15 years. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. A blue knit polo shirt covers his stocky 52-year-old frame. "He worked for me." AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. Wikizero - San Jose Flea Market Tim and George Jr. worried that pressuring state and city officials to deal Jeff back in at Bay 101 would backfire and authorities would close down the card room. I'm on the hook for $15 million. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. He asked longtime family attorney Ron Werner if his brothers could write a recommendation letter for him, something state officials had told him he would need to be considered eligible for a gaming license. But Jeff was confident. When family patriarch and Flea Market mastermind George Bumb Sr. was invited to attend a party with President Clinton in San Francisco a couple of years ago, he refused to go and sent his community relations specialist, Betsy Bryant, instead. "We made it very clear to Jeff and everybody else concerned," Tim says, "that I'm not going to stick my neck on the line here. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. Earlier this year, a month before Venzon was sentenced to 14 years in prison, district attorney investigator Michael Schembri closed out the Venzon case, noting in a court filing, "No new information has been uncovered relating to the murder for hire case [at the Flea Market] which our department investigated several years ago." she said, referring to the family-run Catholic school at the Flea Market. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. One of George Bumb Sr.'s granddaughters explained to police that her family was very old-fashioned: "The woman gets the short end of the deal; she is a whore. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. Snow White or Cinderella? Snow White or Cinderella? The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. But Jeff says that privately he and his brothers had an oral agreement--which Tim Bumb now corroborates--that would one day let him repurchase his shares and become a partner in Bay 101 again. He asked longtime family attorney Ron Werner if his brothers could write a recommendation letter for him, something state officials had told him he would need to be considered eligible for a gaming license. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." "We made it very clear to Jeff and everybody else concerned," Tim says, "that I'm not going to stick my neck on the line here. "They had to find Snow White and Cinderella," Tim Bumb says, "and that was George and I." Other allegations were more dubious: Investigators chased after a tip that the Bumbs were skimming cash from the Flea Market parking lot, an accusation that was never proven. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. It's like we had no life except for the family." He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." Unlike other partners, neither Jeff nor Brian had buyback provisions in their written agreements, an intentional omission meant to appease state gaming officials who wanted them out of the picture. In response to Jeff's legal attacks, George Bumb Sr. and Bumb & Associates filed two separate suits of their own to collect nearly $1 million in loans and interest they claimed Jeff never paid. "And when I visited you at your home I told you that other than God you are the only person I've gotten down on my knees for," Venzon says on page 7. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. "It made you tough, made you get a thick skin." "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. And he [Jeff] wants me to violate the condition which says in it that I sign away my rights and they close us down. It's like we had no life except for the family." AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. "My issue with [George Bumb Sr.]," Jeff Bumb complains about his father, "was his control of where you lived, what kind of house you bought, where your children went to school, who your friends are, whether your children went to college, who they would marry, what kind of wedding they would have." She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. Renee Marie Bumb Wiki, Biography, Age, Husband, Family, Net Worth And Jeff himself had been playing poker since he was 12. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. to use this representational knowledge to guide current and future action. As legend has it, the Bumbs still send a monthly check to the widow of a former head of security who died of a brain tumor 20 years ago. At one point in the investigation, sheriff's detectives had Jeff's daughter call Matthew while he was working at the Flea Market to confirm the sexual activities. When he was jailed, the desperate cop wrote a 15-page handwritten letter in pencil to George Bumb in May 1997 asking the Flea Market owner to bail him out. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. Finally, in July 1994, the state cleared Tim and George and gave them a conditional OK to let the games begin. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. "We made it very clear to Jeff and everybody else concerned," Tim says, "that I'm not going to stick my neck on the line here. Realizing that, Jeff offered to pay higher card-room taxes (next year the city expects to collect $4.5 million from Bay 101) and pick up the tab for security. Jeff was also getting word from his nieces and nephews that his father said at a family poker game: "If it was up to him, all the grandchildren would marry each other." Earlier this year, a month before Venzon was sentenced to 14 years in prison, district attorney investigator Michael Schembri closed out the Venzon case, noting in a court filing, "No new information has been uncovered relating to the murder for hire case [at the Flea Market] which our department investigated several years ago." Even though all the lights were out, she told police that she knew it was Matthew "because the moonlight shined into the room through the large windows that faced the ocean." Eight days after the molestation incident was reported to police--and one day after Jeff Bumb formally refused his father's $6.9 million buyout offer--George Bumb Sr. sent Jeff a curt typewritten memo informing Jeff that he was terminated effective immediately and had to clean out his desk before 5pm. ON AUG. 11, 1995, Jeff sat in his Flea Market office scribbling on a piece of paper, plotting his grand return to his peach palace. He also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. The ensuing delay forced Jeff Bumb to lay off 600 workers he had hired. In response to Jeff's legal attacks, George Bumb Sr. and Bumb & Associates filed two separate suits of their own to collect nearly $1 million in loans and interest they claimed Jeff never paid. Bryant, who acts as emissary for the family and its patriarch, thinks the Bumbs are a misunderstood bunch. Still Standing: Jeff Bumb, Bay 101's ostracized founder, boasts that despite various local, state and federal investigations over the years he has emerged squeaky clean. You know the school we went to?" Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. He also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. One of George Bumb Sr.'s granddaughters explained to police that her family was very old-fashioned: "The woman gets the short end of the deal; she is a whore. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. One wag refers to them as "the Beverly Hillbillies of San Jose." First, Jeff tried to have the Bumb & Associates partnership dissolved after accusing his family of trying to force him out without paying him a fair price. VENZON WAS well known to the Bumbs. When Vice President Al Gore called to personally invite the elder Bumb to a fundraiser at the Los Altos home of real estate magnate George Marcus, Bumb put the VP on hold for several minutes, ultimately making Betsy take the call. Police reports would suggest she had, "for about a year," been giving "blow jobs" to 19-year-old Matthew Bumb, son of George Bumb Jr. Unlike other partners, neither Jeff nor Brian had buyback provisions in their written agreements, an intentional omission meant to appease state gaming officials who wanted them out of the picture. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. The Flea Market, touted as the nation's largest, made the Bumbs rich, grossing nearly $12 million in 1996. The day before, Monday at noon, half of the club's tables were full of gamblers playing seven card stud, Omaha and Texas Hold 'Em. During the Venzon investigation, San Jose police dug up an old file from November 1990 in which Venzon, a sheriff's deputy, had reported his department-issued Smith & Wesson 9 mm automatic stolen. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. But Jeff and his family started hearing that instead of showing concern and support for his daughter, George Bumb Sr. and others in the family were blaming his freshman daughter for the incident and not her adult-age cousin. Tim now runs Bay 101, which he says is no easy task. According to Werner, molestation of his daughter became part of a laundry list of damning things Jeff threatened to disclose if his buy-out demands weren't met. And as with any divorce, embarrassing private details about the family and its businesses made their way into the public record. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. There were flowers everywhere. Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. They recorded the conversation. The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. Jeff didn't mind, though. But Jeff and his family started hearing that instead of showing concern and support for his daughter, George Bumb Sr. and others in the family were blaming his freshman daughter for the incident and not her adult-age cousin. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. He started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. It's like we had no life except for the family." I'm on the hook for $15 million. "I mean," Jeff later said at a deposition, "it was a time of hurt and heartache for us--and not my father, not my mother, not my brother George, not my brother Tim, not Brian could care less." At one point in the investigation, sheriff's detectives had Jeff's daughter call Matthew while he was working at the Flea Market to confirm the sexual activities. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. Timothy Bumb (J), 42 - San Jose, CA Has Court or Arrest - MyLife The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. Jeff himself was hit with a federal grand jury investigation over financial transactions in connection with a multimillion-dollar residential development near Silver Creek Road. Other allegations were more dubious: Investigators chased after a tip that the Bumbs were skimming cash from the Flea Market parking lot, an accusation that was never proven. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. In a statement to police, Jeff's daughter recounted how the first incident had happened the year before on the Fourth of July at a family beach house near Santa Cruz when the older boy allegedly started fondling her while she was asleep on the living room couch. Tim Bumb says writing a letter on Jeff's behalf would have violated the agreement with the police chief and put the club in jeopardy. "My issue with [George Bumb Sr.]," Jeff Bumb complains about his father, "was his control of where you lived, what kind of house you bought, where your children went to school, who your friends are, whether your children went to college, who they would marry, what kind of wedding they would have." Jeff entertained offers to buy the club, the highest bid, he recalls, coming in at $40 million. `He drives by every day on his way to his Maverick Consulting development business in Mountain View, but he never gets off the Brokaw/First Street exit to pay a visit. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. Still Standing: Jeff Bumb, Bay 101's ostracized founder, boasts that despite various local, state and federal investigations over the years he has emerged squeaky clean. There were flowers everywhere. Jeff didn't mind, though. "He took care of it." Jeff Bumb says he believes that state and local investigators at the time of Bay 101's limbo were investigating a rumor that Jeff had tried to get someone killed, a charge Jeff denies. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. Of the four brothers, Tim and George had faced the least resistance from state gaming officials. The ensuing delay forced Jeff Bumb to lay off 600 workers he had hired. OK--we didn't get out--OK? Well, guess what? A FEW DAYS AFTER returning from his son's Oct. 13, 1995, military graduation in San Diego, Jeff and his wife, Elizabeth, got some appalling news: Their 14-year-old daughter had been involved in a sexual relationship with an older male cousin. And then, just when it seemed as though family relations couldn't get any worse, they did. And there were gamblers everywhere who had come looking for some action. One month later, the state attorney general's office made a devastating announcement: Authorities had come across issues of "such magnitude" and "concern" that they would need at least another month to decide if gambling should be allowed at Bay 101. As legend has it, the Bumbs still send a monthly check to the widow of a former head of security who died of a brain tumor 20 years ago. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. First, Jeff tried to have the Bumb & Associates partnership dissolved after accusing his family of trying to force him out without paying him a fair price. Bumb family attorney Ron Werner suggested that Jeff and his family had a hidden motive for waiting nearly a month to report the incident to police. According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. The court saga evolved into a battle of wills between a father--a man who wouldn't even let the Vatican tell him what to do--and his oldest son, determined to break free from the old man's grasp. Eight days after the molestation incident was reported to police--and one day after Jeff Bumb formally refused his father's $6.9 million buyout offer--George Bumb Sr. sent Jeff a curt typewritten memo informing Jeff that he was terminated effective immediately and had to clean out his desk before 5pm. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" In fact, on the day he was arrested, records show that Venzon pawned a 14-karat-gold diamond cluster ring and a ladies' gold tennis bracelet for a total of $298 at American Precious Metals, a jewelry store at the Flea Market run by Joseph Bumb. Deputy chief Tom Wheatley says that police wondered if Venzon, or someone, destroyed the barrel to prevent a ballistics test from tracing a fired bullet to the gun.
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