I know we have already gone over this and I hate to flog the dead donkey but could we start a thread on Michael Helgoth just so I can get my facts right.

He was found in a suspicious suicide on Feb 14th 1997, with stun gun and Hi Tek boots right?

Anybody know anything else?

M

By the way, the additional 'stuff' on Helgoth was that his family had a dispute over the City's transaction involving their land which later became the headquarters for AccessGraphics and Helgoth had a remote cabin available to him at about the time of the "kidnapping".

Different investigative agency. BPD not involved in Helgoth case.
Suicide was outside Boulder, wasn't it?

Was it suicide or murder? It was ruled a suicide but the angle of the bullet wound and the fact that there was pillow stuffig int he wound makes that seem a bit questionable.

By his body was a pair of hi-tec boots AND a stun gun. Hmmmm

The sheriff's department had the case - - they did let the BPD knew about it and I was told they suggested the BPD check into it - - they refused.

Helgoth's friend told the cops he thought Helgoth was involved - - the cops didn't want to hear it. The friend got the boots, the cops didn't want to take them so they went to the Ramsey investigator and eventually were given to the CBI.

The Boulder police didn't want to do anything with the boots - - they didn't check them until August of 2000. Then they said the boots were not a match - - they did not say that they could NOT have made the print - - and there IS a difference there. The boots could have been worn for 6 weeks after the murder and had different scars on the print.

I'd like to know if they were eliminated as the possible source - - the BPD does NOT say that.

Another interesting point - - the city of Boulder ended up owning the house where Helgoth died - - they could have searched it looking for evidence but did not. They destroyed the house and made it part of a park.

There's a lot more to the story - - this is just the beginning...

Some say Helgoth was cleared by DNA testing. If he was, then the Ramseys should be too - - after all, we know it wasn't their DNA found mixed with JonBenét's blood in her panties.

Interesting that the stun gun and boots were both in close proximity to the body---it's not unheard of for a perp to kill himself when the police starting closing in. Could there have been a note if it really was a suicide?

DAILY CAMERA
SEA OF WRECKED CARS COULD BECOME PARK
Tuesday, July 23, 1996
Section: MAIN
Edition: FIRST
Page: 1A
By LISA MARSHALL Camera Staff Writer

If the Boulder City Council decides to buy up to 101 acres along Valmont Road for a large community park, children will someday kick a soccer ball in what is now a sea of wrecked cars. Families will picnic in what once was a thriving poultry farm.

But finding a farm fresh egg or a part for an old Chevy in Boulder could be tricky.

"There are a lot of people who are going to be sad to see us go," said ##### Helgoth, 59, whose family has run Valmont Auto Parts - the last auto yard in town - for nearly four decades. Helgoth said Boulder County land regulations and neighborhood covenants that prohibit people from working on their cars at home have taken the profit out of running a junk yard. Despite the family's rich history on the land, they are eager to sell.
"It's a different business than it was back when Dad started it," he said. "Back then, if you carried Ford or Chevy parts, you had it all."

The Parks and Recreation Board on Monday recommended the city buy as much land as possible on the Valmont Corridor site for $13.5 million. The City Council will give final consideration to the site Aug. 6.

The city is negotiating details of cleaning up the area, but landowners have agreed to deliver the sites "'clean," said Wally Cameron, who handles real estate purchases for the city. He would not release the prices of individual parcels within the site.

The Helgoths expect it will take about five months to sell off the usable parts from some 2,000 cars, hire a wrecking company to crush the remaining auto skeletons and plow away debris, allowing for leftover petroleum to evaporate.

"Then we'll take it easy for a couple of years. We haven't had much time to vacation," said Doug Helgoth, 49, who has run the business with his brother, #####, since 1961.

Next door, K.C. Schneider is preparing to tell tenants, who have stored large mechanical equipment in his outdoor storage area for five years, they'll have find another storage place.

"It's probably one of the last inexpensive storage areas around and a lot of the people that run their little businesses don't have any place to go," said Schneider, who grew up riding horses and picnicking on the 24-acre property that used to be a farm.

Even a few family dogs are buried out there, he said.

"It may not look like it now, but it's going to be a great park site," said Schneider, struck by the beauty of the Flatirons behind the field of rusty cars and trailers on his lot. "Everyone is taking a little less money to see it as a park because they are obviously people who have owned property here for decades and care about Boulder. I can't wait to take my kids on a picnic out there."

While thrilled with the prospect of seeing a park there, Schneider said he views the land deal as the end of an era, a reflection of Boulder's move toward being an economically exclusive community.

"Every town needs a junkyard," he said.

Across the street, where the Boulder Valley Poultry farm has doled out eggs for local groceries and individuals since 1960, Mildred Vaughan is less enthusiastic about selling her family's 22.5 acres to the city.

Vaughan, 78, is afraid she'll lose her connection with the people of Boulder if she can't sell them eggs anymore. "They are really down in the dumps about not being able to get their farm fresh eggs," she said.

But Vaughan said she will bite an offer to clean up and sell "only if the price is right."

I don't think the city had to resort to condemnation---they cut the deal before they had to pursue that. And, like the newspaper article points out, zoning being what it is in Boulder, people could no longer work on cars in their yards, so the junkyard business was not as lucrative as it was in the past.

Access did expand on Pearl Street.......but I don't see the connection to the Helgoth's.

DAILY CAMERA
ACCESS GRAPHICS SALES SOAR
DISTRIBUTOR OF HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE HAS GROWN NEARLY 2,000 PERCENT SINCE 1990.

Tuesday, October 8, 1996

Section: BPLUS
Edition: FIRST
Page: 6D
By Tom Locke Camera Business Writer

In Boulder high-tech circles, growth is nothing extraordinary, so it takes super expansion to really raise some eyebrows.

Access Graphics Inc. is a good candidate.

In 1990, Boulder-based Access posted $59 million in sales. In 1996, it expects revenues to be nearly 2,000 percent higher.
"This year we will do about $1.2 billion," said Laurie Wagner, Access vice president for worldwide business development.

Access Graphics, a subsidiary of Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin Corp., is a distributor of mid-level computer hardware and software, emphasizing Unix operating systems. It acts as an intermediary between manufacturers and "resellers" that sell to end-user businesses.

Its success in that niche is translating into a need for more employees and more office space in Boulder.

Access' total employment grew from 120 in 1990 to 430 by December of last year. It is 550 now and is projected to be 680 by the end of next year.

The Boulder share of that employment was about 90 in 1990 and 295 by December of last year. It now stands at 380, and should be about 470 by the end of next year.

Those 90 or so new hires during the next 15 months will occur in a variety of areas such as sales and marketing and technical support, Wagner said. The growth has brought a need for more space, and Access has worked out a 10-year plan with real estate developer J. Midyette to eventually supply 48,000 square feet to supplement the 52,000 square feet the company already occupies in Boulder.

Midyette is adding a third floor of 6,000 square feet to the building at 1414 Pearl St., adjacent to the Access headquarters building at 1426 Pearl St. Access plans to move into that space in January or February.

In addition, Midyette is building a new 26,600-square-foot office building across the street at 1433 Pearl St., and Access will initially lease 22,000 square feet for occupancy in July.

What's driving the growth?

One key cause is the expansion of the Unix marketplace and the partners Access has picked. More than half of its business comes from sales of hardware made by Mountain View, Calif.-based Sun Microsystems Inc. Access is one of only two distributors in the country that Sun has authorized to sell to resellers. The other authorized distributor is Merisel Inc. of El Segundo, Calif.

Another element for growth is the company's geographic expansion, Wagner said. "That's the direction we're moving, toward being a global company."

Access entered the European market in 1994 and now has 100 field sales representatives there. It also operates in the Canadian market and entered the Latin American market in June with the opening of an office in Mexico City.

Key to Access' business is the support it provides to its 5,000 reseller customers in areas such as technical information, sales positioning, and service or maintenance contracts. For instance, a reseller that has bought equipment through Access and is having technical problems installing it can call Access for guidance.

"I think one of their biggest strengths is they meet our needs from A to Z," said Bruce Alexander, operations manager for Graftek Inc., a Boulder-based software developer and value-added reseller of Sun equipment.

For instance, he can gain up-to-the-minute reseller price and end-user list price information on equipment through the Access site on the World Wide Web.

Greg McKnight, vice president of sales and marketing for the Root Group, a Boulder-based reseller, said that Access has helped his company in understanding Sun Microsystems and has also helped it in developing opportunities in the marketplace.

He noted that a reseller can get a variety of hardware and software products from Access to integrate into a solution for an end-user. That's an appealing alternative to dealing with a number of different suppliers, particularly when delivery can be ensured within 24 hours.

To do that, Access needs to buy the necessary hardware and software, and warehouse it for a quick turnaround to resellers. That takes capital, and being a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin helps. "I think one of their biggest strengths is they're financially sound," said McKnight.

Would Access Graphics ever go public? Wagner acknowledged there have been rumors to that effect, but, she said, "We don't have any specific plans to go public at this time."

The relationship with Lockheed Martin has provided Access with the money it has needed to fund its growth, Wagner said. That relationship dates back to the formation of Access out of three companies in 1989. Lockheed subsidiary Calcomp, of Anaheim, Calif., bought a minority interest in Access when it was formed, and Lockheed bought the rest of Access in 1991.

On the supplier side, Access can take some of the load off manufacturers by helping estab lish a network of competent resellers and training them. In addition, it can lower the manufacturer's technical service costs. For instance, Access takes 7,500 calls a month relating to Sun Microsystems equipment and refers less than 1 percent to Sun.

Mountain View Calif.-based Silicon Graphics Inc. was dealing directly with resellers prior to deciding to use Access as a distributor in August 1995. Now, resellers get technical support involving Silicon Graphics hardware that involves a whole-solution approach. That reduces finger-pointing between hardware and software suppliers when a technical glitch arises.

Frank Hensley, a sales director for Exabyte Corp., a Boulder-based storage-systems provider, says the key to Access' growth has been its ability to focus on a specific market, Unix-based solutions, and its sophisticated technical expertise necessary for that market. Among the Access advantages he pointed to are its economies of scale in warehousing, technical expertise for entire solutions, and carrying reseller receivables that a manufacturer doesn't want to worry about.

"It lets manufacturers do what they're good at," Hensley said.

Distributors have been consolidating across the country to realize economies of scale, and Access is keeping pace. Said Hensley: "I haven't got a stronger distributor in the country."

DAILY CAMERA
CAUSE OF FIRE REMAINS UNKNOWN
FIRE AND POLICE OFFICIALS DISAGREE ON WHETHER SHONKWILER`S HOME WAS DESTROYED BY ARSON

Tuesday, May 12, 1998
Section: LOCAL NEWS
Edition: FIRST
Page: 1C
By Matt Sebastian Camera Staff Writer

More than a week after an early morning blaze destroyed a nearly completed home, investigators still aren`t sure what sparked the fire, although a police detective said it doesn`t appear to be arson.

Firefighters spent nearly six hours putting out the May 1 fire that gutted developer Robert Shonkwiler`s 10,000-square-foot North Boulder home, which was 75 percent complete.

"It`s not arson, or at least it doesn`t appear to be," Boulder police Detective Rick Guzman said Monday.
But Boulder Fire Marshal Adrian Hise said it may be too soon to say that.

"There were a number of samples and pieces of evidence sent in for some engineering review to try and determine whether they might have been a factor," Hise said.

Neither the fire`s cause nor its point of origin has been determined, the fire marshal said.

Hise said late last week his department submitted pieces of electrical wiring and parts of appliances to a private company for analysis.

"To my knowledge, we have not gotten any of that back yet," Hise said. "At this point, we`re still waiting."

The nearly finished home, at 3015 Third St., was worth between $750,000 and $1 million.

The fire department`s investigation has proceeded slowly because of the instability of the rubble. A crane was used last week to lift fallen roof beams and other debris, allowing investigators access to the destroyed home.

Shonkwiler`s name can be seen on several downtown Boulder buildings. His most notable recent projects in Boulder include the 929 Pearl St. building at the former Pasta Jay`s restaurant site and a 12,000-square-foot office and retail building at 1327 Spruce St.

DAILY CAMERA
VALMONT CITY PARK UNDER WAY
A LONG-TERM PLAN IS BEGINNING TO BE VISIBLE IN AN AREA ONCE CALLED AN EYESORE

Wednesday, April 29, 1998
Section: LOCAL NEWS
Page: 1C
By Kristin Dizon Camera Staff Writer

Memo: Map of proposed park is available in envelope file PARKS: VALMONT CITY PARK.

What do the county jail, an auto junkyard and a chicken farm all have in common?

They are all part of or next to what will become the city's largest park.

The proposed Valmont City Park will be built over 20 years or more, allowing future generations to determine some park amenities. Presently, there is little money to shape the 132-acre site beyond turning 20 acres into a grassy area and installing infrastructure for future development.
Because of the long-term time frame, the city has no cost estimates for the final product. About $18 million is budgeted just to buy the land, $14 million of which has been spent.

Boulder's first citywide park has the county jail on the northern border and some commercial and industrial businesses all around. The site encompasses a former poultry farm where 40,000 chickens laid eggs and Valmont Auto Parts, Boulder's only auto junkyard. The non rectangular shape is also bisected by Valmont Road, where a pedestrian underpass will one day connect the northern and southern halves of the park.

The complex also could include several atypical park features - a small neighborhood commercial center, leased office space and a building to house the parks and recreation staff.

Planners say it's an excellent place to take land that could have been sold for commercial development and fulfill some of Boulder's unmet and future recreational needs, while preserving an open area and scenic views of the Flatirons. The site was selected because it was one of the few sizable parcels left in Boulder and is centrally located. .

City Council recently approved a concept plan, the fourth considered. The elaborate wish list includes six lighted baseball or softball fields; trails; a bicycle racing track; three recreation buildings; playgrounds; courts for basketball; roller hockey and tennis; a skateboard park; an amphitheater; community gardens; picnic tables; and a cross-country skiing loop.

Before any groundbreaking, a number of steps must be taken. About 22 acres of the park site aren't yet owned by the city, which is in negotiations with three separate landowners. One is the junkyard site, where owners ##### and Doug Helgoth will be required to clean up between 2,000 and 3,000 cars, as well as substances such as oil and battery fluid that have seeped into the ground over 40 years of operations there.

Owners of a 1-acre lot and a 5-acre strip of land have yet to come to terms with the city. It is hoped property negotiations will be complete by the end of summer, said Wally Cameron, acquisition manager for the Open Space and Real Estate Department. If the talks hit an impasse, Cameron said the City Council could consider having the land condemned.

So far, about $14 million from a 1995 tax initiative has been spent to buy 83 acres of land. That was added to 28 acres already owned by the city. The remaining 22 acres are projected to cost between $3 million and $4 million, Cameron said.

Another $4.1 million has been set aside for the first phase of development, which will involve grading, irrigating and seeding roughly 20 acres of the site, as well as installing the necessary water, sewer and utility connections for later development. Construction is likely to begin in late 1999 or 2000, but it`s not clear when would the first phase will be complete.

The city hopes to pursue public-private partnerships to develop the park over the years, and has been approached by several interested groups. Janet Bellis, chair of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, said the group will start working on a set of criteria to determine how responsibilities would be shared and what level of public access would be required under such partnerships.

Another way the city could help pay for the park is through commercial development on part of the site. The current plan considers the possibility of selling or leasing 3 to 6 acres in the northeast corner of the park for offices, and another 3 acres for a neighborhood commercial plaza.

"I think it`s good to have a little commercial center there, because those areas are not served by one right now," Bellis said.

Possibilities for that development include a grocery store, dry cleaning, a restaurant, coffee shop and other services.

The parks department also is considering relocating its offices from the present location at 3198 Broadway to the Valmont City Park.

"We are looking at the long-term future of our office space needs," said Chris Dropinski, director of the department. She said staying at the present site, a former church building they moved into "temporarily" in 1992, will require remodeling.

Despite the lengthy timeline of the plan, many say changes to the Valmont property are already impressive.

"They`ve already cleaned up a good bit of the site," said Ann Moss of Shapins Associates, a firm consulting on the plan. "It`s changing as we look at it."

Parks planner Kate Bernhardt, who is managing the Valmont site, said chicken coops and a large grain silo have been removed, a pond has been filled and waste from the many birds is gone at the former poultry farm. In other areas, sheds and outhouses have been stripped away.

Those involved with the Valmont City Park say it will change the character of the area for the better.

"One of the reasons I really wanted to get this piece (of land) is because this is a very good opportunity to clean up a real eyesore in town," Bellis said.

"I can`t think of another site that has so many trail systems feeding into it," Bernhardt said.

Yes Don I keep missing the main chat times but I am still committed to this case and still TothFollower. I might write a phD on it- haha! As if I haven't got enough to do. I might be back at your time Friday here which is Thursday night there so I could catch you guys then.

Someone emailed me from the other site and she asked me about Helgoth and I could remember a bit but couldn't remember a lot so I said to her that I would make a thread and collect the expertise for her to read.

It is so nice to know that the "other side" knows where to go for the facts. I am glad you could do that for them.

I would say something but what you've just said, says it all.

Thisis the logo from the basement and a reversed photo of the bottom of Helgoth's boots

These are fromLou Smit's powerpoint presentation and would be part of the case shown to the grand jury.

Too bad this stuff wasn't brought to the FBI when the BPD went there for advice.

The suspect in the case is John Edward Kenady, 47, the same person who this summer handed over a pair of Hi-Tec boots to private investigators working for John and Patsy Ramsey.

Boulder police are testing the boots at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, but do not think they are related to the case.

The source of a partial Hi-Tec bootprint inside the couple's home is one of many unanswered questions in the investigation into the Dec. 1996 homicide of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey.

And while the boots Kenady gave investigators belonged to a former resident of the house he allegedly broke into, Boulder Police Chief Mark Beckner said Monday the boots are not among the items Kenady is accused of stealing.

Kenady was arrested in Longmont Oct. 10 in connection with breaking into a home in the 4900 block of Valmont Road in July.

He told sheriff's deputies that Boulder Police Detectives Cmdr. Joe Pelle gave him permission to enter the home in the name of investigating the Ramsey case. Pelle said he never gave Kenady permission to break into the home. Kenady also said he feared evidence would be lost because the house was supposed to be demolished.

Police suspect Kenady of kicking in a rear door to the home and taking with him three "drafting quality drawings," a $54,000 check and legal papers including a deed of trust.

Diamond jewelry, several watches and money in one bedroom were untouched, according to police reports.

The home is owned by the family of a deceased man the Ramseys' investigators have said may have been involved with the beating and strangulation death of their daughter.

The deceased man shot himself in the chest Feb. 14, 1997, the day after Boulder County District Attorney Alex Hunter held a national press conference in which he said the field of suspects had narrowed and vowed to bring the little girl's killer to justice.

The man also may have owned a stun gun, which the Ramseys' suspect may have been used in their daughter's death, according to public records.

The Ramseys remain under police suspicion in their daughter's death, but have repeatedly said they did not kill their daughter and that police should be looking for an intruder. They have moved from their 755 15th St. home and now reside in Atlanta.

Kenady, who was friends with the deceased man, said he suspected him of having some involvement in the killing, but did not say why, according to police reports.

The documents stolen from the home were found in Kenady's possession. The drawings belonged to the deceased man.

Officers at the Boulder Police Department and the Boulder County Sheriff's Office said Kenady may be mentally impaired from a car accident.

Kenady's attorney, Karin Dostal, said her client is mentally competent.

She said she would not comment on the case other than to say, "There are certain things that will come out later."

Kenady was charged Oct. 13 and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Nov. 8, which will likely to be rescheduled.

Ollie Gray, an investigator for the Ramseys, said a family member gave Kenady the boots. Kenady gave Gray the boots through an attorney. Gray turned them over to police in August and answered police questions about them during an interview with the Ramseys in Atlanta at the end of August.

Contact Christopher Anderson at (303) 473-1355 or andersonc@thedailycamera.com.

October 25, 2000

Purported Ramsey investigator accused of burglary
Lafayette man charged with entering house to snatch pair of boots

Associated Press

October 25, 2000
BOULDER — The man who provided the parents of JonBenet Ramsey with purported evidence in their daughter's death has been arrested on burglary charges.

John Edward Kenady, 47, told officers who arrested him that he was investigating the Ramsey case.

Kenady, of Lafayette, last summer provided detectives working for John and Patsy Ramsey with a pair of boots he believed may have left a partial print inside the family's home, possibly by the killer.

Police do not believe the boots are connected to the Ramsey case, but sent them to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for examination.

Police Chief Mark Beckner said the boots belonged to a former resident of the house Kenady is accused of burglarizing Oct. 10.

Kenady, when arrested, said Boulder police had authorized him to break into the home. Boulder detectives denied the claim.

Kenady also said he feared evidence would be lost because the house was supposed to be demolished. Police suspect Kenady of kicking in a rear door to the home and taking with him three "drafting quality drawings," a $54,000 check and legal papers including a deed of trust.

Diamond jewelry, several watches and money in one bedroom were untouched, according to police reports.

The home is owned by the family of a deceased man, whom the Ramseys' investigators have said may have been involved with the beating and strangulation death of their daughter.

http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/extra/ramsey/1025burg3.shtml

the cops then said they couldnt' accept anything as it was stolen and so illegally obtained and useless as evidence.

The boots were acceptable because the family gave those to Kenady - but the cops didn't want to take those either. those were turned over to the Ramsey investigator, Ollie Gray, and later those were examined by the CBI.

We can see the match - - excuse me - - similarities - - in the photos I posted - - but the print in the basement was not a full print, the shoes were worn after the murder and may have had some different marks on the bottom - - - so they did not <b>match</b>. I never heard anyone say they were eliminated as a possible match.

And no one ever found Hi-Tec footwear in the ramsey house - - or any photo of John, Patsy or Burke wearing Hi-Tec footwear. the gossip about that bootprint being left by Burke is absolute garbage. BORG garbage.

Boulder is a small town. I wonder how many of these characters would have known each other- Wolf, Kenady and Helgoth for example?

Did he ever speak with Lou Smit?

Was he afraid whoever killed Helgoth would come after him?

Why did Kenady think Helgoth was somehow involved?

So many questions which will probably remain unanswered.

(Helgoth was always my favorite suspect, just don't know why he didn't stand out to the cops)

Because his name was not Ramsey.