And that ain't happening because I can't afford it." Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. Snow White or Cinderella? Of the four brothers, Tim and George had faced the least resistance from state gaming officials. 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. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. 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. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. He babysat the construction site every day for almost five months. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. 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. OK--we didn't get out--OK? The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." He and his brothers had a plan, he says. On March 17, 1993, the City Council gave Bumb and his partners the green light to open a 40-table card room on a 10-acre plot of land off U.S 101. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. Tim, the second youngest of George Bumb's four boys, was already running the family toy business, Fact Games, and Premium Pet Stores. 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. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." For all his quirks and controlling behavior, the old man is regarded as a benefactor by most family members and some Flea Market employees who know their boss to be capable of great generosity. Don't Shoot: George Bumb Sr., the publicity-shy patriarch of the Bumb family and creator of the Flea Market, in a rare photo which appeared in California Today magazine in 1980. You know the school we went to?" "They didn't teach anything about this. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. It wasn't the money, either. 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. There were flowers everywhere. Over the past year alone, Bumb & Associates and Bay 101 have given $56,000 to now-Attorney General Bill Lockyer, the man in charge of card-room regulation. 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. They recorded the conversation. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. 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. 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." That promised to be a hard sell to the San Jose City Council, which would have to authorize both the new site and the expansion. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. Whenever trouble arose at the Flea Market with city code or building inspectors, the Bumbs sent Jeff to settle things. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. She told police about at least seven other sexual encounters she had with her cousin after that. And for nearly a month, they did. 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. Christopher Gardner The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. 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. 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. And for nearly a month, they did. Toward the end of the call, things got heated. 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 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. You know the school we went to?" The card club has done more than bring unwanted public scrutiny to this insular group. He also runs day-to-day operations at the family-owned Flea Market. 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. About 20 percent of the 130 students there are Bumb relatives.) "I'm a big boy." attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. 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. And for nearly a month, they did. 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." OK--we didn't get out--OK? In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. Christopher Gardner Christopher Gardner "They had to find Snow White and Cinderella," Tim Bumb says, "and that was George and I." "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. "He worked for me." She told police about at least seven other sexual encounters she had with her cousin after that. It did the unthinkable: But his dream, which now seemed so close to being a reality, was about to become a nightmare. 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. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. "They didn't teach anything about this. A blue knit polo shirt covers his stocky 52-year-old frame. Jeff didn't mind, though. George Bumb Sr.'s loan-repayment demands came in July 1996, just as his oldest son and his wife were about to move to Los Gatos and break away from the family and its eastside enclave. But there was no gambling done that night. 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. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. 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. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. FROM THE START, Jeff's three brothers and father didn't share his enthusiasm for opening a lavish gaming house. 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. The Bumbs made millions off of their successful gaming club, Bay 101, but the experience tore the family apart and aired the dirty laundry of a once tightly-knit and fiercely private clan. But Jeff was confident. "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. 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. In fact, he hasn't set foot in the place since October 1995, the year he stopped talking to his father and three brothers. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. 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. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. And for nearly a month, they did. "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." 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. she said, referring to the family-run Catholic school at the Flea Market. And Brian, the handsome and gregarious youngest brother, was in charge of day-to-day operations at the Flea Market. It's like we had no life except for the family." Jeff Bumb later explained to the press that they didn't know partnerships were required to file such reports, and they paid the state a $1,250 fine. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. Originally he was scheduled for questioning on March 10, 1997, but the old man's lawyers explained that their client was extremely ill, suffering from "severe life-threatening conditions," practically on his death bed. 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. 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." 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. Jeff didn't mind, though. 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. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. 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. 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. 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. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. 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. And then, just when it seemed as though family relations couldn't get any worse, they did. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. It did the unthinkable: 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." 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. 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." He also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. He also runs day-to-day operations at the family-owned Flea Market. And for nearly a month, they did. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. 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. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. "He worked for me." 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. 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 district attorney's office says that Bumb attorney Ron Werner turned the letter over to authorities immediately after it came in the mail. He also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. 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. Dealers stood at the tables, ready to deal the cards. 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. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. 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. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. The Bumbs had a plenty of experience with a cash business through the Flea Market, which they've run for almost 40 years. 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. 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. 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. You think this didn't break my heart?" Near the end Venzon writes, "They want to bring up the 'murder-for-hire' investigation again. (Tim Bumb, the school's director, says it was put there to save on rent. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. They recorded the conversation. Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. Behind the scenes, the Bumbs suspected their potential gambling competitors and a disgruntled former Flea Market employee of giving investigators unsubstantiated material to use against them. Toward the end of the call, things got heated. In the last five years, the Bumb family and its enterprises have been investigated for illegal political campaign contributions, an alleged profit-skimming racket out at the Berryessa Flea Market and even a murder-for-hire scheme involving Johnny Venzon, a former cop, convicted thief and gambling addict. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. The district attorney's office says that Bumb attorney Ron Werner turned the letter over to authorities immediately after it came in the mail. George Bumb Sr.'s loan-repayment demands came in July 1996, just as his oldest son and his wife were about to move to Los Gatos and break away from the family and its eastside enclave. 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." 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. They recorded the conversation. 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. In fact, he hasn't set foot in the place since October 1995, the year he stopped talking to his father and three brothers. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. 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. (Tim Bumb, the school's director, says it was put there to save on rent. Jeff entertained offers to buy the club, the highest bid, he recalls, coming in at $40 million. They recorded the conversation. "They had to find Snow White and Cinderella," Tim Bumb says, "and that was George and I." Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." OK--we didn't get out--OK? 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. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) "They didn't teach anything about this. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." 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. 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. 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." "The thing they probably value most is their privacy," Bryant explains. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." 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. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. "It's a very strong family. Phone & Email; All Addresses (1) Family (3) Social; Court (2) And More; EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. Don't Shoot: George Bumb Sr., the publicity-shy patriarch of the Bumb family and creator of the Flea Market, in a rare photo which appeared in California Today magazine in 1980. They recorded the conversation. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. 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 Jeff himself had been playing poker since he was 12. 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. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. "He worked for me." 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. Jeff Bumb later explained to the press that they didn't know partnerships were required to file such reports, and they paid the state a $1,250 fine. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. And that ain't happening because I can't afford it." George Bumb Sr., an avid card player, held a regular weekly family poker game at his home. 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. It wasn't the idea of gambling. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" And then, just when it seemed as though family relations couldn't get any worse, they did. It pitted Bumb against Bumb. "They didn't teach anything about this. 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. 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. Today, Bumb family enterprises include the local Premium Pet Stores chain, Air One Helicopters and, of course, Bay 101. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. But he didn't cash out. And then there's the stuff that never made it into headlines, like the alleged murder-for-hire plot out at the Flea Market. The gambling palace Jeff Bumb--the oldest son who is often described as the most entrepreneurial of the four brothers--had in mind was going to take a lot of effort and political skill. Originally he was scheduled for questioning on March 10, 1997, but the old man's lawyers explained that their client was extremely ill, suffering from "severe life-threatening conditions," practically on his death bed. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. 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." Or at least he thought he didn't. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. 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." 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." 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 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.