Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. 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. 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. 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. Jeff Bumb remembers that when he was going to school at Bellarmine in the '60s, the other kids would call him things like "Bumbsy" or "Bumbo." ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. 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. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. And he [Jeff] wants me to violate the condition which says in it that I sign away my rights and they close us down. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. 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. On weekends he'd bring his wife and a few of his 10 kids down there, too. Well, guess what? 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. 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. (Tim Bumb, the school's director, says it was put there to save on rent. He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. (That thing that involved Jeff when Bay 101 was scheduled to open but didn't.)" He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. In her 10 years as the Flea Market's community relations specialist, Bryant has come to adore the lack of pretension among this clan of millionaires who have their offices in a mobile home where none of the furniture seems to match. 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. 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. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. And he [Jeff] wants me to violate the condition which says in it that I sign away my rights and they close us down. Finally, in July 1994, the state cleared Tim and George and gave them a conditional OK to let the games begin. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. Three years ago, the Mercury News listed the Bumb family in the Top 10 of the valley's most generous political contributors. OK--we didn't get out--OK? OK--we didn't get out--OK? AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. OK--we didn't get out--OK? attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. And Jeff himself had been playing poker since he was 12. And Brian, the handsome and gregarious youngest brother, was in charge of day-to-day operations at the Flea Market. Werner said no. Christopher Gardner Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. 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." It wasn't the idea of gambling. 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. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. It's like we had no life except for the family." Werner said no. Christopher Gardner "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. 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. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. 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. 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. Christopher Gardner 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. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. They recorded the conversation. (Tim Bumb, the school's director, says it was put there to save on rent. "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." 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. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Werner said no. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) 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. It's like we had no life except for the family." 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. 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. "They had to find Snow White and Cinderella," Tim Bumb says, "and that was George and I." Hamilton, where Latin mass is conducted on a regular basis. "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. "He took care of it." 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. Christopher Gardner "They didn't teach anything about this. 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 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. 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." Near the end Venzon writes, "They want to bring up the 'murder-for-hire' investigation again. VENZON WAS well known to the Bumbs. "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." "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. As we do our drive-by on a Tuesday midmorning, there are more than 100 cars in the parking lot. She told police about at least seven other sexual encounters she had with her cousin after that. During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. He and his brothers had a plan, he says. Or at least he thought he didn't. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. THINGS WERE certainly simpler back in the old days, before Bay 101, when the Bumbs were known for the Berryessa Flea Market, the family-owned business started in 1960 by 75-year-old family patriarch George Bumb Sr. The district attorney's office says that Bumb attorney Ron Werner turned the letter over to authorities immediately after it came in the mail. 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. "He worked for me." "They didn't teach anything about this. 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. OK--we didn't get out--OK? EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. Christopher Gardner "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." Well, guess what? Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. 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 Bumb remembers that when he was going to school at Bellarmine in the '60s, the other kids would call him things like "Bumbsy" or "Bumbo." 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. 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 thing that involved Jeff when Bay 101 was scheduled to open but didn't.)" But there was no gambling done that night. At the time, Jeff was in the midst of negotiating an arrangement to be bought out of the family businesses. 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. 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. Werner said no. 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. 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. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. And as with any divorce, embarrassing private details about the family and its businesses made their way into the public record. In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. 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." Near the end Venzon writes, "They want to bring up the 'murder-for-hire' investigation again. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. And there were gamblers everywhere who had come looking for some action. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. At the time, Jeff was in the midst of negotiating an arrangement to be bought out of the family businesses. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. 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. OK--we didn't get out--OK? 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. It wasn't the idea of gambling. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. It wasn't the idea of gambling. 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. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. You know the school we went to?" AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. 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. George Bumb Jr., the quiet one with a flair for things mechanical, was already at the controls of Air One Helicopter. 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. At the time, San Jose, like cities throughout the state, was strapped for cash, looking at an $11 million budget shortfall. 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. Bryant, who acts as emissary for the family and its patriarch, thinks the Bumbs are a misunderstood bunch. And for nearly a month, they did.