3
Idaho Statesman IDAHO STATESMAN: A McClatchy Newspaper, 1200 N. Curtis Road, Boise, ID • P.O. Box 40, Boise, ID 83707 • (208) 377-6200 • © 2015 Idaho Statesman, Vol. 150, No. 359, 5 sections, 44 pages PRIMARILY SUNNY 89° / 62° SEE A15 INSIDE TODAY A NEWS Catching Up A2-3 | News A4, 6, 8 | Nation/World A9-14 | Idaho History A6 | Weather A15 D DEPTH Robert Ehlert D1 | Opinions D4 | Letters to the Editor D5 | Guest opinions D8 | Editorial Cartoons D5 | Charles Krauthammer D7 E EXPLORE Tim Woodward E1 | TV E2 | Carolyn Hax E3 | Horoscopes E3 | Puzzles E3 | Books E4 | Religion E5 | Obituaries E8-9 S SPORTS Soccer S1 | The Bottom Line S2 | SportsTV/Radio S2 | Scoreboard S5 | Pro sports S4 | Brett Favre S4 | Motor sports S6 TIM WOODWARD A visit prompts cleaning purge years in waiting EXPLORE, E1 BRITISH OPEN WHAT’S NEXT AT ST. ANDREWS? Well, a Monday finish, unless Scotland falls into the sea SPORTS, S1, S4 WILDFIRE Along I-15 in California, mayhem NEWS, A6 Dr. Jamie Ricks D.C. 2031 E. Hospitality Ln. Ste 150 • Boise, ID CALL 336-2225 ACT FAST - CALL NOW! Live Pain Free INSTANT RELIEF POSSIBLE WITH LASER THERAPY! *excludes federally funded programs, auto accidents, & worker’s compensation.Patients with these are eligible for a consult & demonstration for a nominal fee.New patients only. The first 10 candidates will receive… FREE Initial Pain Evaluation, FREE Explanation & Diagnostics of your Problem Including aTreatment Plan FREE TWO(2) LASER AND/OR SPINAL DECOMPRESSION TREATMENTS Lasers Relieve Pain! Try this revolutionary treatment and see for yourself! LASER TREATMENT FOR PAIN ASSOCIATEDWITH: Herniated and Bulged Discs Spinal Stenosis • Arthritis Pain Failed Back Surgery Car Accident Injuries/Whiplash Carpal Tunnel • Headaches • Sciatica Shoulder Pain • Plantar Fasciitis 1605996-01 SUNDAY EDITION $2 JULY 19, 2015 Mike Sanders hoped to spend the summer cruising up Idaho rivers with his bird dogs. Instead, he says, the Boise company he hired for $50,000 to build a custom boat took his money, and its owner left town. All Sanders got out of the deal was this unfinished trailer frame and an unfinished boat hull. And he is not the only one complaining, though a lawyer for the boat builder says there is another side to the story. Statesman reporters Zach Kyle and Audrey Dutton investigate. DEPTH, D1 A STATESMAN INVESTIGATION LEFT HIGH AND DRY More than 20,000 fans filled Albertsons Stadium on Saturday for a first in Boise history and watched as Basque club Athletic Bilbao of Spain scored a 2-0 win over Club Tijuana of Mexico in an international soccer friendly. The match was mostly that, as illustrated by Athletic Bilbao’s Aritz Aduriz, who helped Club Tijuana’s Javier Gandolfi off the green grass after a trip. Yes, the grass was indeed a spectacle, covering up Boise State’s blue turf field for the first time in stadium history. Athletic Bilbao manager Ernesto Valverde said the field started a little dry and slow but improved in the second half. “The field was incredible taking into account all the work they’ve done,” he said. TheparkinglotopenedfortailgatersatnoontoalinebackedallthewayuptoBroadway.Inpoured people with Basque and Mexican flags and food, and youngsters with soccer balls. READ STORIES AND SEE PHOTOS FROM THE MATCH SPORTS, S1, S3 SEE VIDEO AND PHOTOS OF THE MATCH AND FANS AT IDAHOSTATESMAN.COM BASQUE SOCCER GAME A FRIENDLY HAND IN BOISE JOE JASZEWSKI / [email protected] TRAVEL Colorado is not just for beer; go find the wine EXPLORE, E1 IDAHO HISTORY Helping the poor was always a community effort NEWS, A6 PRESIDENTIAL RACE As funding pours in, winners and losers emerge NEWS, A12 An ambitious vision to save the butterfly that’s a symbol of America’s heartland relies on getting milkweed, the monarch caterpillar’s food source, to thrive. DEPTH, D1 BUTTERFLY RESCUE Pollination plan for monarchs Ahigh school teacher who named her son after the “To Kill a Mock- ingbird” hero says that Atti- cus Finch’s transformation in “Go Set a Watchman” is a chance to learn from a char- acter’s flaws. OPINIONS, D4 LITERARY LESSONS With new Atticus, a human reflection Anne Epeldi, who just turned 95, has a simple wish: to be at home, her home, for the rest of her days. Her family steps up to help. EXPLORE, E1 HEART OF THE TREASURE VALLEY SHE HAS PLENTY OF COMPANY The deaths of African-Amer- icans at the hands of police have fueled Black Lives Mat- ter and media coverage. But another minority group is suffering, too. NEWS, A8 POLICE KILLINGS Latinos see deaths but not publicity

High and dry: Boise businessman leaves wake of unfinished boats

Embed Size (px)

DESCRIPTION

 

Citation preview

Page 1: High and dry: Boise businessman leaves wake of unfinished boats

Idaho Statesman

IDAHOSTATESMAN:AMcClatchyNewspaper, 1200N.Curtis Road, Boise, ID • P.O. Box40, Boise, ID83707 • (208) 377-6200 •©2015 IdahoStatesman,Vol. 150,No. 359, 5 sections, 44pages

PRIMARILYSUNNY

89° / 62° SEE A15

INSIDE TODAYANEWSCatchingUpA2-3 |NewsA4, 6, 8 |Nation/WorldA9-14 | IdahoHistoryA6 |WeatherA15

DDEPTH RobertEhlertD1 |OpinionsD4 | Letters to theEditorD5 |GuestopinionsD8 | EditorialCartoonsD5 |CharlesKrauthammerD7EEXPLORETimWoodward E1 |TV E2 |CarolynHax E3 |Horoscopes E3 | Puzzles E3 | Books E4 |Religion E5 |Obituaries E8-9

SSPORTS Soccer S1 |TheBottomLine S2 | SportsTV/Radio S2 | Scoreboard S5 | Prosports S4 | BrettFavre S4 |Motorsports S6

TIMWOODWARD

A visit promptscleaning purgeyears in waiting

EXPLORE, E1

BRITISH OPEN

WHAT’S NEXTAT ST. ANDREWS?Well, a Monday finish, unlessScotland falls into the sea

SPORTS, S1, S4

WILDFIRE

Along I-15in California,mayhem

NEWS, A6

Dr. Jamie Ricks D.C.

2031 E. Hospitality Ln.

Ste 150 • Boise, ID

CALL 336-2225 ACT FAST - CALL NOW!

Live Pain Free INSTANT RELIEF POSSIBLEWITH LASER THERAPY!

*excludes federally funded programs, auto accidents, & worker’s compensation. Patients

with these are eligible for a consult & demonstration for a nominal fee. New patients only.

The first 10 candidates will receive…

FREE Initial Pain Evaluation,

FREE Explanation & Diagnostics of your Problem Including a Treatment Plan

FREE TWO(2) LASER AND/OR SPINAL DECOMPRESSION TREATMENTS

LasersRelievePain!

Try this revolutionary

treatment and see

for yourself!

LASER TREATMENT

FOR PAIN ASSOCIATED WITH:

Herniated and Bulged Discs

Spinal Stenosis • Arthritis Pain

Failed Back Surgery

Car Accident Injuries/Whiplash

Carpal Tunnel • Headaches • Sciatica

Shoulder Pain • Plantar Fasciitis

1605996-01

SUNDAY EDITION

$2 JULY 19, 2015

MikeSandershopedtospendthesummercruisingupIdahoriverswithhisbirddogs. Instead,hesays, theBoisecompanyhehiredfor$50,000tobuildacustomboat tookhismoney,anditsowner left town.AllSandersgotoutofthedealwasthisunfinishedtrailer frameandanunfinishedboathull.Andheisnot theonlyonecomplaining, thougha lawyer for theboatbuildersaysthere isanothersidetothestory.StatesmanreportersZachKyleandAudreyDuttoninvestigate.DEPTH,D1

A STATESMAN INVESTIGATION

LEFT HIGH AND DRY

More than 20,000 fans filled Albertsons Stadium on Saturday for a first in Boise history and

watchedasBasqueclubAthleticBilbaoofSpainscoreda2-0winoverClubTijuanaofMexicoinan

international soccer friendly. Thematchwasmostly that, as illustrated byAthletic Bilbao’s Aritz

Aduriz,whohelpedClubTijuana’sJavierGandolfioff thegreengrassafteratrip.Yes, thegrasswas

indeed a spectacle, covering up Boise State’s blue turf field for the first time in stadium history.

AthleticBilbaomanagerErnestoValverdesaidthefieldstartedalittledryandslowbutimprovedin

thesecondhalf. “Thefieldwas incredible taking intoaccountall theworkthey’vedone,”hesaid.

TheparkinglotopenedfortailgatersatnoontoalinebackedallthewayuptoBroadway.Inpoured

peoplewithBasqueandMexicanflagsandfood,andyoungsterswithsoccerballs.

READSTORIESANDSEEPHOTOSFROMTHEMATCH • SPORTS,S1,S3SEEVIDEOANDPHOTOSOFTHEMATCHANDFANSATIDAHOSTATESMAN.COM

BASQUE SOCCER GAME

A FRIENDLY HAND IN BOISEJOE JASZEWSKI / [email protected]

TRAVEL

Colorado is not just for beer;go find the wine EXPLORE, E1

IDAHO HISTORY

Helping the poor was alwaysa community effort NEWS, A6

PRESIDENTIAL RACE

As funding pours in, winnersand losers emerge NEWS, A12

Anambitiousvisiontosavethebutterfly that’sasymbolofAmerica’sheartlandreliesongettingmilkweed, themonarchcaterpillar’s foodsource, to thrive.DEPTH,D1

BUTTERFLY RESCUE

Pollination planfor monarchs

Ahighschoolteacherwhonamedhersonafter the“ToKillaMock-ingbird”herosaysthatAtti-

cusFinch’s transformationin“GoSetaWatchman” isachanceto learnfromachar-acter’s flaws.OPINIONS,D4

LITERARY LESSONS

With new Atticus,a human reflection

AnneEpeldi,whojust turned95,hasasimplewish: tobeathome,herhome, for therestofherdays.Herfamilystepsuptohelp.EXPLORE,E1

HEART OF THETREASURE VALLEY

SHE HAS PLENTYOF COMPANY

ThedeathsofAfrican-Amer-icansat thehandsofpolicehavefueledBlackLivesMat-terandmediacoverage.Butanotherminoritygroupissuffering, too.NEWS,A8

POLICE KILLINGS

Latinos see deathsbut not publicity

Page 2: High and dry: Boise businessman leaves wake of unfinished boats

D LETTERS TO THE EDITOR D5 • OPINIONS D4 SUNDAY, JULY 19, 2015

Depth

Myfirst introductiontoStephenS.Trott, a federaljudgewholives inBoise

andsitsonthe9thCircuitCourtofAppeals,cameinthemail.

Itwas late in2014whenamul-tipage letterappearedonmydeskwithhisreturnaddress.At first Iwonderedwhetheroneofouropinions intheStatesmanhadrattledsomebodyat thefederallevel.

Only inmysecondyear inBoiseat thetime, Iknewnext tonothingaboutTrott.Butafterdoingre-searchandaskingquestionsofnewsroomcolleagues,oneof thenewseditorswithadeeper frameofreferencethanmineassuredmethat thefederal judge“wasabigdeal,”andifhehadwrittensome-thingforus,headvisedmetopublish it.

Theideaofasittingfederaljudgewritinganopinionforanewspaperwas intriguing—notnearlyas intriguingaswhatTrottwrote, though.His firstpiecefortheStatesmaninmytenurewasarebuttal toacommentarythatDavidAdlerhadwritten, inwhichAdlersupportedthepointsofviewthat theuseof torturewasillegal, repugnant, ineffectiveandnevermetthethresholdof“theends justify themeans.”

Inhisrebuttal,Trott introduceda litanyofhistoricexamples inwhichtheU.S.had,ofnecessity,engagedinbrutalandsometimesgoryactivities tomaintainourfreedomsandveryexistence.Herecountedtheeventsof9/11andthenfocusedonthe“enhancedinterrogationtechniques”usedagainst terrorists.

WroteTrott: “So, thereweare.Was itacceptable towaterboard(KhalidSheikh)Mohammedundermedicalsupervisiontotrytosave innocent lives,ornot?Howaboutyour life,or the lifeofoneofyour lovedones?Dowereallywant toprosecuteas ‘warcrimi-nals’ themenandwomenweturnedto intheheatofbattle toprotectus,assomewouldargue?”

Sincethen, the75-year-oldTrott—whose lifeandcareerexperiences includebeingamem-berof thefolksinginggroupTheHighwaymen,attendanceatHar-vard lawschool,andstintsasaU.S.attorneyinCaliforniaandassist-antattorneygeneral forDepart-mentof JusticeCriminalDivision,beforebeingappointedbyPresi-dentRonaldReagantothefederalbench—hasofferedseveralmoreopinionsfor theStatesman.Hetouchedonthingssuchasthepoliceuseofdeadly force, the jobofgrandjuries,SupremeCourtdecisionsandthedubiousstatusoftheConfederatebattle flag.

Besidesmyappreciationfor

See EHLERT, D6

Judge Trottshares somewisdomwith us all

Eyes on Idaho

ROBERT EHLERT

MINNEAPOLIS — Starting assoon as this fall, America’s heart-land could begin to look strikinglydifferent to a monarch butterflyflutteringsouthfor thewinter.

Oceansof cornwouldbedottedwith islands of native plants.Homeowners would have fewer

lawns — and a lot less mowing.Roadsides would grow thick withgrasses and flowers. And morethan a billion unruly milkweedplants would pop up along a200-mile-wide corridor along In-terstate 35 fromMinnesota toTex-as.

That’s the ambitious vision bur-ied in a national pollinator plan re-leased by the White House — anepicattempttosavethegaudysym-bol of the prairie from its steadyslide toward the Endangered Spe-cies list. The key is milkweed, the

one andonly food source formon-arch caterpillars, which has all butdisappeared from Midwesternlandscapes, thanks largely toGMOcrops and the widespread use ofRoundup.

Butif itsucceeds,theplanwouldrescuepollinatorsconsideredvitalto a healthy environment, and infiveyears thenumberofmonarchsthat travel 3,000 miles every yearfromtheMidwesttothemountainsof Mexico and then back again,

BUTTERFLY RESCUE

STEPHEN B. MORTON / The New York Times

Milkweed plants have all but disappeared fromMidwestern landscapesthanks to GMO crops and the use of Roundup. Environmental groupshave petitioned to put the butterfly on the Endangered Species list.

Pollinator plan needs a billionmilkweed plants for monarchs

Pesticides are wiping out theplant used by the insects tolay their eggs.

BY JOSEPHINE MARCOTTY

STAR TRIBUNE (MINNEAPOLIS)

See MONARCHS, D3

Mike Sanders started worrying about his $50,000

this spring when he heard rumors in boating circles

about Bohnenkamp’s Whitewater Customs, the

Boisebusinesshecommissionedtobuildhis jetboat.

Sanders heardmurmurs that boat production had

stoppedattheBWCofficeandwarehouseonthecor-

ner ofMorrisHill andCurtis roads. He heard owner

ChristopherBohnenkampmight file for bankruptcy.

ThenhestartedcallingBohnenkamp’scellphoneand

other phone numbers associated with the business,

first toask forprogress reports, thentocancel theor-

der.The callswent unanswered.Thevoicemail box-

eswere full andnotacceptingmessages.

In May, Sanders said he received a call from the

companytellinghimtopickuptheboatandtrailerhe

had paid for in June 2014. His boatwas a partly com-

pletedhull.His trailerhadnowheels, no lights, noth-

ingbutametal skeleton.

Twoweeksago,Sanders thumbedthroughapileof

records in his SouthBoise home: the build order; the

reply to his complaint to the Idaho Attorney Gener-

al’s Office; the photocopy of the cashed $50,000

check.Thereisnorecordofthe$7,500aluminumpro-

peller boat Sanders said he traded in to BWC and

hasn’t seensince.

“Idon’t carehowmuchmoneyyoumake,$50,000isa lotofmon-ey to throwdown the toilet,” saidSanders, a technician at MicronTechnology.

Sanders wasn’t the only cus-tomerfeelingshorted.

Bohnenkampandhisboatsalesand manufacturing businesseshavebeensuedmultiple timesbydisgruntled customers and bycompanies looking to collect onunpaidbills.Fourpeoplefiledfor-malcomplaintswiththeIdahoat-torneygeneral thisyear.Multiplecustomers told the StatesmanthattheyhavetalkedwiththeFBI.

Now, Bohnenkamp isworkingon a new endeavor: a boat tour

company, Niagara Jet Adven-tures, inNiagaraCounty,N.Y.

Bohnenkamp did not respondtocalls.Apersonansweringacallto the management extension atNiagara Jet as “Christopher” saidBohnenkampwasnotavailable.

Hislawyer,MiaMurphyinMe-ridian, said Bohnenkamp did notmeanfor this tohappen.Hisbusi-ness unexpectedly ran out ofmoney, she told the Statesman,

A STATESMAN INVESTIGATION

Businessman leaves wakeof unfinished jet boats

KATHERINE JONES / [email protected]

Mike Sanders paid $50,000 to BohnenkampWhitewater Custom for a boat that was never completed. Sanders has paperwork, including hisbill of sale. He also has an unfinished trailer that was supposed to be completed as part of the deal. “It doesn’t seem right,” he said.

Christopher Bohnenkamp departed Boisefor New York, thousands of miles fromunhappy Idahoans, wave of legal activity

This photo and tweet were published to Niagara Jet Adventures’Twitter page on Sept. 10.

BY AUDREY DUTTON

AND ZACH KYLE

[email protected] [email protected]© 2015 Idaho Statesman

!WALK THROUGH THE

EVENTS IN THIS STORY

WITH AN INTERACTIVE

TIMELINE IdahoStatesman.com

See BOATS, D2

What has been your favoritecommunity event this summer?

JOIN THE CONVERSATION AT FACEBOOK.COM/IDAHOSTATESMAN

Page 3: High and dry: Boise businessman leaves wake of unfinished boats

D2 ● SUNDAY, JULY 19, 2015 IDAHO STATESMAN ● IDAHOSTATESMAN.COM

and now his customers are beinguncooperative and hostile, threat-eninghimandspreadingmisinfor-mation instead of waiting for ateamof four attorneys and two ac-countants to help Bohnenkampmake good on the customers’ pur-chases.

Murphy said the customerswillhave a resolution plan to look at inAugustorSeptember, andmanyofthem can pick up completed hullsnow. She called the hulls “90 per-cent”of thefinishedproduct.

“We have been communicatingwith those boat owners who willcommunicate with us,” Murphysaid in an interview. “Frankly, eachand every one of these people —and there’s only about 17 — eachand every oneof themhas a differ-ent set of circumstances ... fromcompletely done boats, to boatsthatweren’tevenstarted.”

SIMILARSTORIES

John Basye, of McCall, said hehasa“carcassofahull”ofa jetboatto show for the $130,000he paid inApril2014.

Leland Spindler, who lives inBoise part of the year, told theStatesman he paid more than$100,000 in June 2014 for a boat heneverreceived.

Brice Vineyard, of Coeur d’A-lene, saidhe isout$65,000paidup-front in August 2014 for a new jetboat,aswellashisownboatthathetraded in for an $8,000 credit to-wardthenewone.

They and Sanders all said theywere supposed to have their boatsbynow.

Vineyard said he is convincedthathewillneverseehismoneyoracompletedboat.

“I’ve been sitting back,” Vine-yard said. “We’ve all been sittingback, waiting for all of this to un-fold.”

MONEYPROBLEMS

Bohnenkamp’s first brush withbroken financial obligations camein October 2009. He and his wife,Rachel Bohnenkamp, filed forbankruptcy, listing debts of $4.7million and assets of $765,000. Atthe time, they lived inWilder, andBohnenkamp was operating threebusinesses he had started in 2006and2008.

The filing included Bohnen-kamp’s Custom Weld Marina — abusinessthatsoldboatsbutdidnotmanufacture them, according toBohnenkamp’s lawyer—onmanyof those unpaid bills. The bank-ruptcyshowed$1.7millionowedtoonecreditorfor“flooredboats,”forexample.

Custom Weld Marina was hitwithtwolawsuits in2009.

A former employee sued inMarch 2009 for more than $4,000in unpaid commission on a boatsale that went sideways and even-tually yielded a separate lawsuitfromtheboatbuyers.Bohnenkamparguedhedidnotowethecommis-sion because the boat sale wasfraught with problems. In July2009, Bohnenkamp’s business set-tled, agreeing to pay the employeemostof thecommission.

ApartscompanysuedbothBoh-nenkamp and CustomWeldMari-naonOct.20forunpaidbills.

Aweek later, the Bohnenkampsfiled for bankruptcy. In December2009, they filed paperwork to dis-solve all three businesses, sayingthedissolutionof thosebusinesseshad been approved by Bohnen-kampasofOct. 19.

Two days after the bankruptcyfiling, Bohnenkamp incorporatedtwo new businesses: Bohnen-kamp’s Whitewater Customs andTreasureValleyMarine.

Those businesses promptedquestionsfrombankruptcytrusteeJeremy Gugino during the bank-ruptcyproceeding.

Court documents from a sepa-rate legal action quoted that con-versation:

MR. GUGINO: OK.What is Boh-nenkamp’s Whitewater CustomsInc.?

MR. BOHNENKAMP: That’s anew business that we are gettinggoing.

MR.GUGINO:OK.Whendidyoustart that?

MR.BOHNENKAMP:What is thedateonthat? It’sbeen...

MR. GUGINO: October 29th. Isthatright?

MR.BOHNENKAMP:Yeah.MR. GUGINO: So two days after

youfiledforbankruptcy?MR.BOHNENKAMP:Uh-huh.MR.GUGINO:OK.AlsoTreasure

ValleyInc.MR. BOHNENKAMP: Treasure

ValleyMarine.Thatis justthesalesand service and repair side of thenewbusiness I amtrying toget go-ing.

MR.GUGINO:OK.Doeitheroneof themhaveanyassets?

MR.BOHNENKAMP:No.MR. GUGINO: Do they have any

bankaccounts?MR. BOHNENKAMP: We got

bankaccounts.MR. GUGINO: OK. Is there any

moneyinthebankaccounts?MR. BOHNENKAMP: There is.

There’s, basically we have takensomedepositsonsomejobswearegoing to be doing from customersandIcangetyouallofthatinforma-tion.

MR.GUGINO:OK. Sohowmuchare inthebankaccounts?

MR.BOHNENKAMP:I’mnotsureat this time.…I think there’s, inoneaccount I think there’s 3,000 andtheotheraccountIthinkthereis13.

MR. GUGINO: What is the pur-poseof thebusiness?

MR. BOHNENKAMP: TreasureValley Marine is going to be sales,service and repair on boats andWhitewater Custom we are look-ing to start buildingour ownprod-uct.

MR. GUGINO: Where are yougettingthemoneytostart this?

MR. BOHNENKAMP: Basicallywork off of customers that are go-ing to be building with us and de-posits, and that’s what’s getting usgoing.

MR. GUGINO: Did you take anyoftheassetsofBohnenkamp’sCus-tom Weld Marina and transferthemintothesenewcompanies?

MR. BOHNENKAMP: Absolutelynot.

Murphy told the Statesman thatthe bankruptcy was a “completelydifferent matter involving differ-ent parties” and stressed that Boh-nenkamp’s businesses before thebankruptcywere to sell boats builtbyanothercompany—whichalsoended up suing Bohnenkamp. Thepostbankruptcy operation was “avery, very small, specialized busi-nesswhentheyopenedit”andoverthe years built 120-someboats, shesaid.

Murphy said she couldn’t answ-er generally whether asking a cus-tomerwhopaidforajetboattopickupahullandwaitforaremediationplanwasabreachofcontract.

She said Bohnenkamp has set-tled one lawsuit by agreeing to abreach-of-contract judgment inthat case. She said she cannot dis-cusscases in litigation.

“Wearedefinitelyattemptingtoresolvetheseissues,”Murphysaid.“I want to caution you, though,there is a lot of misinformation, aton of misinformation that is outthere. And before you print any-thing, I’m giving you this warningthat you want to get (facts right).Wehave sent letters topeople tell-ingthemtheyarecommittingdefa-mation. ... We are just very, veryconcerned.”

THEOTHERSIDEOFTHE

STORY

A lawyer for Idaho AttorneyGeneral Lawrence Wasden re-viewed four complaints this yearagainst Bohnenkamp, filed be-tweenMarch 19andMay 17.Depu-ty Attorney General StephanieGuyon sent a stronglyworded let-terJune4toBohnenkamp,suggest-ingthestatewaslookingathimforapossible violation of the IdahoConsumerProtectionAct.

“Thecomplaintsestablishapat-ternorpracticeoffalse,misleadingor deceptive conduct by Bohnen-kamps Whitewater Customs,” theletter said. “Specifically, the com-pany accepted money from con-sumers forgoodsorservices that itfailed to deliver within a reasona-ble time.”

Guyon gave the company 10business days to respond with awritten plan to resolve the com-plaints.

Murphy sent a letter defendingBohnenkamp.

Murphy wrote that Bohnen-kamp’s two businesses — BWCandTreasureValleyMarine—areseparate, with BWC manufactur-ing“highendjetboatswhichrangein price from $50,000 to $350,000”and TVM selling those boats. Thecustomers never had contractswith BWC—only with TVM, shewrote.

“Due to a series of unfortunateevents, including loss of financingand an increase in supplies, prod-ucts and labor, BWC began to suf-fer economically [and] ceased tak-ingboatorders inDecember2014,”shewrote. “It finishedmany boatsanddeliveredthemtotheirownersinthewinterandspringof2015.”

Bohnenkamp sold “most of hispersonal property andput another$40,000 into BWC to finish addi-tional boats” but eventually all themoney and assets were spent, andBohnenkamp relocated the com-pany toNewYork, she said. (BWCisnotaregisteredcompanyinNewYork, but Niagara Jet Adventuresis.)

Murphysaidthecompaniesesti-mate20boatsareeitherunfinishedornotyetstarted.

“Decisions are being made re-garding which funds to reimburseand which boats to finish. A twoyear plan is being developed,” shewrote.

OTHERSTOBLAME?

Murphy told the AG that, as alawyer for the business, she hasbeen“amazedat the lackofprofes-sionalism and unbridled ruthlessconduct perpetuated by third par-ties and those that theyhave ‘riled’up.”

“The jet boat industry is highlycompetitive. BWC has sufferedfrom a continual barrage of defa-matory acts for the last twoyears,”she said. “BWC built the first boatthatwas able to navigate theNiag-araRiver.Itmadelocalandnationalnews. From that point on, its com-petitorshavelaunchedacalculatedand strategic campaign of misin-formationandrumors.Thisresult-ed in several boat build jobs beingpulled halfway through comple-tion by nervous owners, employ-ees leaving for competitors, inves-tors electing to not invest andbanks being forced to declinepending finance applications (asthe banks’ jet boat manufacturingcustomers threatened to pull their

accounts).”After hearing fromMurphy and

seeing some of the communica-tions between her and the angrycustomers, the Idaho AttorneyGeneral’sOfficedecidednottotakeactionagainstBohnenkamp.

“We appreciate Mr. Bohnen-kamp taking responsibility for hisactionsandprovidingsolutionsforresolving the complaints,” Guyonwrote inaJune30letter. “Althoughweclosedourfile,wewillcontinueto monitor Mr. Bohnenkamp’s ac-tivities, and we would appreciatereceiving updates from you re-garding any major developmentsconcerningtheconsumers.Specif-ically,wewould like toknowwhena consumer’s claim is completelyresolved.”

The Statesman obtained thecommunications through a publicrecords request. Among the docu-ments were emails between Mur-phy, the lawyer and Sanders, theBoisemanwithahull.

“You’llhave toexcusemyblunt-ness when I say I honestly have ahardtimebelievingthingswilleverbe made right by Mr. Bohnen-kamp,” Sanders wrote to Murphylast month. “I understand at thistimeMr. Bohnenkamp can’t speakto people. I’m not condoning vio-lence but I understand that somepeople spent over $200,000 on aboat,receivednothingandIunder-stand their frustration. … In myopinionBWCisadreamcrusher.

“I think the worst part of thewholeordeal is theactualcomplet-ed BWC boats were some of thebest boats around,” he concluded.“I hopeMr. Bohnenkamp does therightthingbutlikeIsaid,afterwhatI’ve been thru that’s a hard story tobelieve.”

MOVINGONTONEWYORK

Bohnenkamp’s new business,Niagara Jet Adventures, officiallystarted in March 2013. New Yorkdoes not require owners’ names tobe listed, but Bohnenkamp is theowner, based onNiagara Jet socialmediapostsandnewsreportsfromtheNiagaraarea.

Between the time Niagara Jetstarted and November 2014, Boh-nenkamp’s Boise business took or-ders from at least nine customerstotalingat least$1million,basedonpublic records and interviews. Insome cases, the customers tradedinboatstheysayBohnenkampthensold.

One of Bohnenkamp’s businesspartners told city officials last De-cember that “by April 2015, ChrisBohnenkampwillhaveinvested$8million … and by 2016, the invest-mentwill be $11million” for the jetboat tourbusiness.

Niagara Jet Adventures in May2013appliedfor,andlaterreceived,a sales tax abatement on an$898,000projectfromaNiagaralo-cal public development agency.NiagaraJetintheapplicationsaidithad one full-time employee paid

$30,000ayear,withpayrollexpect-ed to eventually reach $750,000 ayear with an average $35,000 an-nualsalary.

Niagara Jet projected it wouldhave seven full-time and two part-time employees by spring 2015,paidatotalof$500,000ayear.

Has it delivered? The IdahoStatesman has requested but notyetreceivedthecompany’send-of-year audit report from theNiagaraCounty Industrial DevelopmentAgency.

But officials from a town inwhich Niagara Jet operates havepraised the company’s generosity,saying in public meetings thatNiagara Jet offered veterans freeridesandputonafireworksdisplayfor theFourthof July.

The company’s former co-own-er, Mike Fox, and Bohnenkamp“bringyearsof successfulbusinessexperience to the project,” the ap-plicationfor taxbenefitssaid.

WHATNOW?

Sandershopedtospendhissum-merinaboatwithhisdogs,huntingon grounds accessible only by riv-er.

Now,hisunfinishedtrailersitsinhis backyard in Ada County southofBoise.His unfinishedhull is get-tingworkedon in a local shop, andhe thinks itwill take$30,000 to fin-ishtheboat.

Hesaidheshouldhavefollowedhis first instinct and bought a boatfromanOrofinocompany.

“I should have done more re-search, but it seemed legit,” Sand-erssaidofBWC.“Therewerehullsbeingbuilt.WhywouldIthinkoth-erwise?”

Basye fears he is stuck paying$700 amonth for the next 20 yearson a loan fromKey Bank for an in-complete hull. He said those wor-riesareexacerbatedbythefactthatBohnenkamp now lives across thecontinent from the customers de-mandingtheirmoneyback.

“How can you pay somebody$130,000andtheyjustdrivetoNewYorkandstartanewbusiness?”Ba-sye said. “That guy’s eating lobsterevery night. Life is good for him.You don’t do that to people. Youshouldn’t be able to get away withthatcrap.”

AudreyDutton: 377-6448;

Twitter:@IDS_Audrey.

ZachKyle: 377-6464;

Twitter:@IDS_ZachKyle

KATHERINE JONES / [email protected]

Christopher Bohnenkamp ran his jet boat businesses, Bohnenkamp’s Whitewater Customs and Treasure Valley Marine, plus a third business, RiverRun Embroidery, which was run by his wife, in a 50,000-square-foot building on Morris Hill and Curtis roads. The property owner has sued Boh-nenkamp for $26,000 said to be owed on rent for March and April.

BOATS

CONTINUED FROM D1

AUDREYDUTTON

ANDZACHKYLE

Audrey andZach cover abroad swath of business topics

for the Statesman.Audrey enjoysdocument-basedreporting andhelping to createonline extras, suchas the interactivetimeline that ac-companies thisstory. Zach hasincreased States-man coverage onagriculture, in-

cludingwriting stories in theag-themedBusiness InsiderpublishedWednesday.

HOWTOLEARNMORE

As a consumer, youmightrun into a situationwhere youare unsure about the lawsgoverning contracts or busi-ness dealings in Idaho.

Among resources are IdahoAttorneyGeneral LawrenceWasden’s “general rulesconcerningwhat to considerbeforemaking amajorpurchase” and informationabout contracts that are avail-able under the consumer topicssection of hiswebsite,www.ag.idaho.gov, and in theIdahoConsumer ProtectionManual.

/ Provided by Mike Sanders

Mike Sanders, of Boise, guesses he’ll spend $30,000 completing his unfinished hull (shown) and trailer.