Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. Near the end Venzon writes, "They want to bring up the 'murder-for-hire' investigation again. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. And as with any divorce, embarrassing private details about the family and its businesses made their way into the public record. Christopher Gardner "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." Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. 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. "I liked my name," he maintains. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. Whenever trouble arose at the Flea Market with city code or building inspectors, the Bumbs sent Jeff to settle things. There were flowers everywhere. Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." Their pun-afflicted surname adds to the hillbilly mystique. 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. 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. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. 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. Life of Brian: Initially denied a gaming license by the state, Brian Bumb has since received a provisional license and become a partner in Bay 101 with his brothers, Tim and George. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. Christopher Gardner Snow White or Cinderella? Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. 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. It's like we had no life except for the family." Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. Well, guess what? Of the four brothers, Tim and George had faced the least resistance from state gaming officials. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. And there were gamblers everywhere who had come looking for some action. Ultimately, Jeff says with resignation, he hopes I find the truth, "not my truth, not their truth, just the truth." (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) "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. It wasn't the money, either. It did the unthinkable: 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. You think this didn't break my heart?" He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. 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. 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. At the time, Jeff was in the midst of negotiating an arrangement to be bought out of the family businesses. OK--we didn't get out--OK? 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. VENZON WAS well known to the Bumbs. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. VENZON WAS well known to the Bumbs. You know the school we went to?" Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. 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. He started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. It wasn't the idea of gambling. Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." 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. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. The Bumbs had a plenty of experience with a cash business through the Flea Market, which they've run for almost 40 years. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. He also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. 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. 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. When Werner broke the news that Jeff's brothers wouldn't write a letter on his behalf, he says Jeff became furious. "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 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. At the time, San Jose, like cities throughout the state, was strapped for cash, looking at an $11 million budget shortfall. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. OK--we didn't get out--OK? 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. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. 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. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. After learning of the incident, Jeff and wife Elizabeth did not report the matter to police immediately. "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." 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. "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. He and his brothers had a plan, he says. Snow White or Cinderella? 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. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. 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. Tim now runs Bay 101, which he says is no easy task. 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. 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 AUG. 11, 1995, Jeff sat in his Flea Market office scribbling on a piece of paper, plotting his grand return to his peach palace. "They didn't teach anything about this. But there was no gambling done that night. 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. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. 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. 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. Werner said no. He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. "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. 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. Christopher Gardner The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night.