"The thing they probably value most is their privacy," Bryant explains. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. 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." 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. And Brian, the handsome and gregarious youngest brother, was in charge of day-to-day operations at the Flea Market. "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." 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 a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. 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. "I'm a big boy." And for nearly a month, they did. "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. Finally, in July 1994, the state cleared Tim and George and gave them a conditional OK to let the games begin. 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 couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. Christopher Gardner Ultimately, Jeff says with resignation, he hopes I find the truth, "not my truth, not their truth, just the truth." 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. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. 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. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. OK--we didn't get out--OK? But Jeff was confident. "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. But the Bumbs are hardly traditional political players. But Jeff was confident. In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. George Bumb Jr., the quiet one with a flair for things mechanical, was already at the controls of Air One Helicopter. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. Some improprieties did turn up: Bumb & Associates, a partnership including the four brothers and their father, had failed to file required reports disclosing more than $100,000 in political contributions made between 1989 and 1992. Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. "It made you tough, made you get a thick skin." The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. 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. 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. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. You know the school we went to?" 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 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. "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. EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." And then there's the stuff that never made it into headlines, like the alleged murder-for-hire plot out at the Flea Market. "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. 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. "It's a very strong family. 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." Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. "They didn't teach anything about this. 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." 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. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. The unanimous vote gives the Bumb family, the site's owner, the right to develop up to 2,450 residential units and as much as 3.4 million square feet of office space there. 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. OK--we didn't get out--OK? Werner said no. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. He and his brothers had a plan, he says. 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. 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. 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. VENZON WAS well known to the Bumbs. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. Place of living: Nadia lives in Los Angeles, where she was born, together with her family. When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. 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?" In February 1994, nearly one year after the San Jose City Council gave Bay 101 its blessing, the state denied the Bumbs and their partners' gaming license application. I'm on the hook for $15 million. And that ain't happening because I can't afford it." 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. During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. And that ain't happening because I can't afford it." Matthew is the kind of guy a relative described to police as "polite," the guy parents wanted their daughters to date. And as with any divorce, embarrassing private details about the family and its businesses made their way into the public record. Christopher Gardner The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Werner said no. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. 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 started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. In February 1994, nearly one year after the San Jose City Council gave Bay 101 its blessing, the state denied the Bumbs and their partners' gaming license application. At the time, San Jose, like cities throughout the state, was strapped for cash, looking at an $11 million budget shortfall. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. Some Interesting & Unknown Facts About Aditi Bumb Aditi Bumb is a Pet Lover. 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. "He worked for me." Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. I'm on the hook for $15 million. His crimes included taking valuables from the bereaved family members of dead crime victims while pretending to console them. 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. I'm on the hook for $15 million. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" About 20 percent of the 130 students there are Bumb relatives.) ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. (That thing that involved Jeff when Bay 101 was scheduled to open but didn't.)" And then, just when it seemed as though family relations couldn't get any worse, they did. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. George Bumb Jr., the quiet one with a flair for things mechanical, was already at the controls of Air One Helicopter. On weekends he'd bring his wife and a few of his 10 kids down there, too. He can't ignore it. 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. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. she said, referring to the family-run Catholic school at the Flea Market. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. They recorded the conversation. 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. OK--we didn't get out--OK? Dealers stood at the tables, ready to deal the cards. 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. 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 followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. 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. In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. 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. Campaign records show that Bumb & Associates and Bay 101 have made at least $587,000 in campaign donations since 1994 to local and state politicians and ballot measures. "It's a very strong family. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. Jeff's daughter interrupted Matthew and said, "And I didn't know better. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. 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. 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. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. Christopher Gardner In February 1994, nearly one year after the San Jose City Council gave Bay 101 its blessing, the state denied the Bumbs and their partners' gaming license application. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth.