{"id":803246,"date":"2020-01-20T11:56:41","date_gmt":"2020-01-20T18:56:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=377622"},"modified":"2020-01-20T11:56:41","modified_gmt":"2020-01-20T18:56:41","slug":"aspen-skico-former-executives-theft-in-selling-skis-was-methodical-unfathomable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/aspen-skico-former-executives-theft-in-selling-skis-was-methodical-unfathomable\/","title":{"rendered":"Aspen Skico: Former executive\u2019s theft in selling skis was \u2018methodical, unfathomable\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
Derek Johnson walks into the Pitkin County Courthouse in November before his plea deal in his case about stealing merchandise from Aspen Skiing Co.<\/strong>
Jason Auslander \/ The Aspen Times<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Former Aspen Skiing Co. executive Derek Johnson is a \u201ccalculating bully\u201d who emotionally abused employees, reduced their wages and stunted their careers in a decade-and-a-half-long scheme to sell merchandise he stole from the company, which put the value at $6 million.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s according to several letters from Skico executives and employees, including CEO Mike Kaplan, filed Thursday in Pitkin County District Court ahead of Tuesday\u2019s sentencing for the 52-year-old Johnson, who pleaded guilty in November<\/a> to one count of felony theft between $100,000 and $1 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was no instance of isolated theft that might be explained away as a brief lapse in judgment,\u201d Kaplan wrote on behalf of Skico and its employees in a two-page letter. \u201cOn the contrary, Derek engaged in an ongoing, intentional, coordinated effort to steal from Aspen Skiing Company.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis deception was methodical, intentional and remains unfathomable to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson \u2014 who also served one term on Aspen City Council (2009 to \u201913) and ran for mayor in 2013 \u2014 faces between four and 12 years in prison when he is sentenced Tuesday by District Judge Chris Seldin.<\/p>\n

His wife, Kerri Johnson, 48, pleaded guilty to felony theft in December<\/a> as part of the scheme, and while prosecutors agreed not to ask for a prison sentence in her case, she will serve an unspecified probation sentence and possibly some time in the Pitkin County Jail. She is scheduled to be sentenced next month.<\/p>\n

The couple, who have three children, also will have to pay back Skico $250,000 as part of the plea deal.<\/p>\n

Police and prosecutors alleged that Johnson and his wife stole more than $2.4 million in skis, snowboards and other goods during his 17-year tenure as managing director of Skico\u2019s rental\/retail department. The sales were conducted through eBay, and included billing Skico for the boxes they used to send their customers the stolen skis.<\/p>\n

However, according to the letters from Kaplan and other executives, that turns out to be the amount the couple made selling Skico property at cut-rate prices, not the value of the products or what Skico paid for them.<\/p>\n

Kaplan wrote that the Johnsons stole nearly $6 million worth of goods and profited at least $2.4 million from the sale of these goods.<\/p>\n

They did so with \u201can unlimited supply chain, zero acquisition costs and no proper taxes paid on a local, state or federal levels. \u2026 (The) sheer volume of skis alone is equivalent to stealing two pairs of skis per day, every day of every year for 12 consecutive years,\u201d one Skico senior executive wrote to the judge.<\/p>\n

By that accounting, the Johnsons stole at least 8,760 pairs of skis.<\/p>\n

The Aspen Times is not naming all of the Skico employees who wrote letters because they said the District Attorney\u2019s Office told them the letters would not be made public before the sentencing. The Times obtained the letters through a request with the court clerk\u2019s office.<\/p>\n

In a text message Friday, Johnson declined to comment on the Skico letters, though he pointed out that 25 people, including current and former Aspen-area elected officials, have filed letters with the District Court urging Seldin to be lenient on him at Tuesday\u2019s sentencing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have letters from the community on file with the court,\u201d he texted. \u201cAnxiously awaiting Tuesday.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED: Johnson\u2019s supporters ask judge for leniency<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

At his plea hearing in November, Seldin asked Johnson what he did that made him guilty of felony theft.<\/p>\n

\u201cI acquired some items without permission,\u201d he said. \u201cHowever, during sentencing I\u2019m looking forward to explaining some of the circumstances surrounding that.\u201d<\/p>\n

After Seldin asked him if he knew his actions constituted theft, Johnson said, \u201cCertainly not initially. But I made some poor choices and that is the case.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaplan, in his letter, referenced those comments and said he felt it was necessary to clarify \u201cthe timeline of events, and dispel any notion that his ongoing actions were in any way condoned.\u201d<\/p>\n

HOW THE PLAN STARTED, WORKED<\/h4>\n

In the early 2000s \u2014 after Skico bought the D&E Snowboard Shop that Johnson co-founded and made him an executive \u2014 the company had an agreement with him to sell \u201csalvage skis\u201d on eBay and split the profits, according to Kaplan\u2019s letter. The skis were \u201cdemo product \u2026 no longer considered rentable by our standards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn those years, the profits from this effort were very small,\u201d Kaplan said. \u201cAfter a couple years of the joint eBay experiment, Derek informed his then-supervisor that the effort was not worth his or the company\u2019s time. Derek advised us that he was shutting the project down, and the company agreed to that.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, Johnson did not shut down the experiment; he super-charged it, and began stealing and selling the salvage skis and brand new demo equipment, Kaplan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs managing director of the rental\/retail department, he also began a practice of ordering far more demo skis than were needed, thereby creating the excess inventory for his illegal enterprise while simultaneously thwarting efforts to implement more robust inventory controls and technology,\u201d Kaplan wrote.<\/p>\n

In fact, Johnson instructed Skico\u2019s buyer to purchase two to three times the number of demo skis that ASC required, according to a letter to Seldin from a Skico vice president who worked on the company\u2019s brand and marketing efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur buyer questioned this immediately because the numbers didn\u2019t make sense,\u201d the person wrote. \u201cDerek lied to him and said it was approved by leadership at the company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flooding the market with cut-rate skis affected local businesses, including ski shops and stores that sold used goods, as well as Skico\u2019s rental and sales business, the Skico senior executive wrote to the judge. In addition, it has caused manufacturers to raise prices to Skico after the allegations against Johnson came to light.<\/p>\n

\u201cReselling at drastically below-market rates also impacted our vendors \u2014 the hard goods manufacturers,\u201d the executive wrote. \u201cThey were understandably angry and responded accordingly by escalating ASC costs to purchase as a direct result of Derek buying goods under false pretenses and breaking contracted purchase terms.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018STEALING\u2019 FROM CO-WORKERS<\/h4>\n

But perhaps the largest impact of Johnson\u2019s actions was on rank-and-file Skico employees, according to the letters.<\/p>\n

The company has performance-based bonuses for all salaried and many hourly employees. But \u201cdue in part of Derek\u2019s stealing, his department missed budget almost every year of his criminal activity,\u201d Kaplan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiven the incentive structures at Aspen Skiing Company, this meant his employees received smaller bonuses, smaller raises and fewer promotions,\u201d he wrote. \u201cDerek was therefore effectively stealing from his own employees and coworkers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s actions also negatively affected employees\u2019 401k plans, Skico officials wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cDerek\u2019s self-serving actions altered people\u2019s wages and reduced their ability to support their own families,\u201d the senior executive said.<\/p>\n

However, it was another discovery about Johnson\u2019s treatment of Skico employees that rattled executives, according to their letters.<\/p>\n

MENTAL ANGUISH SUFFERED BY EMPLOYEES<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Several employees wrote letters to the judge detailing emotional abuse they allegedly suffered at Johnson\u2019s hands. A company vice president wrote of numerous other employees who, sometimes tearfully, told of his allegedly abusive actions toward them.<\/p>\n

Kaplan said Johnson \u201ccultivated a culture of fear and intimidation within his department\u201d that caused company officials to wonder \u201chow we missed seeing that this sub-culture of intimidation existed within a company that I and over 90% of our employees are proud to work for.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI should add that whenever our ownership questioned the efficacy of Aspen Skiing Company\u2019s rental\/retail department, I personally defended Derek,\u201d Kaplan said.<\/p>\n

The Skico senior executive was \u201castounded\u201d to hear of the \u201cpsychological power\u201d Johnson wielded over employees that led to worries over reputations, professional livelihoods and mental stability.<\/p>\n

\u201cRealizing that someone you work with is a thief is very unsettling,\u201d the executive wrote. \u201cThe discovery that surprised and distressed me the most, by far, during this process was comprehending what a calculating bully this man was in the eyes of those who relied on him most.\u201d<\/p>\n

The letter went on to say that \u201cSimply put, you were either a follower and in his good graces or you were socially ostracized, administratively marginalized or professionally punished. His actions ruined some people\u2019s careers, stunted the development of others and left an indelible mark on their character. \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, many wrote of the deep feelings of betrayal they have experienced since Johnson\u2019s actions have come to light, and the fact that prison will remove him from his wife and three children.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt pains me deeply to know that a father will be taken away from his children for a period of time,\u201d Kaplan said. \u201cThis adds yet another layer of betrayal and trauma that Derek has imposed.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut Derek did that. Not the Aspen Skiing Company, not his supervisors, not the court.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaplan said Skico would like to see Johnson receive \u201cat least the middle range of the sentencing recommendation, and we strongly request that he not be eligible for work release for a significant portion of that time so that he is forced to really reflect on what he\u2019s done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another wrote that after 15 years as his colleague, when Johnson\u2019s actions surfaced he realized \u201cthat I really didn\u2019t know this man at all.\u201d He said he knows people in the community will write letters extolling Johnson\u2019s positive attributes as a coach, father and person, but that those are not the issue at hand Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry, but I don\u2019t consider an admitted thief or liar as a stand-up guy or positive influence in any community,\u201d the senior executive wrote to the judge. \u201cThis crime is the gift that keeps giving, and I mean this in the worst possible way.\u201d<\/p>\n

jauslander@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Derek Johnson walks into the Pitkin County Courthouse in November before his plea deal in his case about stealing merchandise from Aspen Skiing Co.Jason Auslander \/ The Aspen Times Former Aspen Skiing Co. executive Derek Johnson is a \u201ccalculating bully\u201d who emotionally abused employees, reduced their wages and stunted their careers in a decade-and-a-half-long scheme […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-803246","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-25 06:01:28","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=803246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803246\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}