{"id":803320,"date":"2020-01-22T11:26:24","date_gmt":"2020-01-22T18:26:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=377689"},"modified":"2020-01-22T11:26:24","modified_gmt":"2020-01-22T18:26:24","slug":"derek-johnson-sentenced-to-6-years-in-prison-for-stealing-selling-13000-pairs-of-skis-from-aspen-skiing-co","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/derek-johnson-sentenced-to-6-years-in-prison-for-stealing-selling-13000-pairs-of-skis-from-aspen-skiing-co\/","title":{"rendered":"Derek Johnson sentenced to 6 years in prison for stealing, selling 13,000 pairs of skis from Aspen Skiing Co."},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
Derek Johnson sits in the Pitkin County District Courtroom waiting for his sentencing on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020.<\/strong>
Kelsey Brunner \/ The Aspen Times<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Former Aspen Skiing Co. executive and city Councilman Derek Johnson was sentenced to six years in prison Tuesday for methodically stealing and selling more than 13,000 pairs of company-owned skis worth nearly $6 million over more than 12 years. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe scale and consistency of the theft dwarfs prior (theft) cases that have come before the court,\u201d District Judge Chris Seldin said. \u201cThe scale and the amount of theft is enough to justify a Department of Corrections sentence. This is an incredibly serious offense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson, 52, was not taken directly to jail after the sentencing. Seldin allowed him to remain with his wife and three children until Monday at 7 p.m., when he will have to surrender to deputies at the Pitkin County Jail. He will likely be transported to an unspecified state prison within two or three days after that. <\/p>\n

In a statement to the court, Johnson, whose wife and oldest son attended Tuesday\u2019s hearing, told Seldin he was the only one responsible for the theft, and apologized to his family, his former Skico colleagues, the community in general and Skico\u2019s guests for his actions. <\/p>\n

\u201cI take full and sole responsibility for the crime I have committed,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cI never intended to hurt anybody. \u2026 I\u2019m deeply sorry and remorseful and ashamed of my actions.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said he will continue to apologize to \u201call that I have wronged.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI will start over to rebuild my life with my family,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cI will continue to give back to this community if allowed.\u201d<\/p>\n

No one else spoke Tuesday in court for Johnson, though 29 members of the community, including friends, neighbors and elected officials, wrote letters to the court<\/a> urging leniency. <\/p>\n

Johnson, who served one term on the Aspen City Council and ran for mayor in 2013, pleaded guilty in November<\/a> to one count of felony theft between $100,000 and $1 million and faced between four and 12 years in prison under terms of a plea deal with the District Attorney\u2019s Office. His wife, Kerri, 48, also pleaded guilty to one count of felony theft<\/a> in connection with the scheme to sell stolen skis on eBay, though prosecutors agreed not to ask for prison when she is sentenced next month. <\/p>\n

The couple will have to pay back $250,000 to Skico under terms of the plea deal. That amount is the insurance deductible Skico had to pay for the insurance claim they submitted because of Johnson\u2019s actions, said Pamela Mackey, his Denver-based attorney. A Skico spokesperson previously said the number had no significance. <\/p>\n

David Clark, Skico vice president and associate general counsel, on Tuesday cast doubt in court on Johnson\u2019s sole responsibility claim, pointing out that his wife was the bookkeeper for their long-running eBay business. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat did she think the deal was?\u201d Clark asked rhetorically. \u201cThat Derek could take what he wanted for free?\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to Johnson\u2019s family, numerous supporters sat in the pews behind him, while many others, including some Skico officials but not CEO Mike Kaplan, filled the pews on the other side of the aisle behind Deputy District Attorney Don Nottingham. <\/p>\n

In letters submitted to the court<\/a> last week, Kaplan and a company senior executive, who asked that his name not appear in the newspaper because the District Attorney\u2019s Office said his statement wouldn\u2019t be made public, detailed how Johnson\u2019s scheme worked. <\/p>\n

It began not long after Johnson sold Skico the Aspen snowboard shop he co-founded and the company made him an executive in their rental\/retail division in the early 2000s. Johnson and Skico started a side business together at that time to sell salvage or used skis on eBay and split the proceeds, Kaplan said. <\/p>\n

But after \u201ca couple years,\u201d the profits were \u201cvery small\u201d and they mutually agreed to discontinue the partnership, he said. <\/p>\n

Johnson, however, did not stop, and \u201cvery significantly\u201d not only continued to sell salvage skis, but also began ordering two to three times more demo skis than the company needed, thereby drumming up the inventory he would later advertise and sell on eBay, according to the letters. <\/p>\n

Clark said Tuesday that after Skico bought those skis, Johnson could sell them for whatever he wanted and reap nothing but pure profit without any taxes levied. Asked by Seldin how certain Skico officials were of Johnson ordering more skis than were needed to pad his own personal inventory, Clark said, \u201cI would say we\u2019re very confident.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s theft was equivalent to stealing two pairs of skis per day, every day for 12 years, the senior executive said in his letter. That equates to 8,760 pairs of skis stolen from the ski company, sold on eBay and often shipped in boxes that were paid for by Skico. <\/p>\n

But according to eBay records, the 8,760 pairs of skis are not even close to the actual number the couple sold, Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

In fact, Johnson and his wife peddled more than 13,000 pairs of skis between 2006 and November 2018, when they were caught, Nottingham said. That number includes at least 3,800 new pairs of skis, and equates to nearly three pairs of skis stolen from his employer and sold every day for 12 years, Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

The numbers do not include the Skico-sanctioned sales, which allegedly took place between 2002 and 2005, Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

When the ski company was involved in the operation in the early years, for example, Nottingham said the Johnsons and Skico made between $52 and $71 per sale between 2002 and 2005. But between 2007 and 2018, the Johnsons alone made between $197 and $317 per sale, he said. <\/p>\n

Sales went from $30,000 in 2005 to $100,000 in 2007 to $247,000 in 2011, he said. <\/p>\n

In 2017 \u2014 the last full year of their scheme \u2014 the Johnsons sold 1,950 pairs of skis and made nearly $459,000. That equates to more than five pairs of skis stolen and sold per day, and $1,250 per day in profit, Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

The median income in Pitkin County is $68,000 per year, meaning the couple raked in that amount every eight weeks tax-free, he said. <\/p>\n

In addition, Johnson was one of the highest paid Skico employees \u2014 he made $116,600 in 2017 \u2014 with a salary in the top 10% of wage earners in the U.S., Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a massive theft operation,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Clark said Johnson was able to get away with the scheme for so long for one reason. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe answer is simple,\u201d he said. \u201cWe trusted Derek Johnson.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson said Tuesday that every pair of skis he ordered and sold \u201chad gone through its useful life\u201d and that the large amount of skis sold after the winter of 2016-2017 was because it was a low-snow year and many skis went unused. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was never my intent to over order and I felt it was always in line with the revenues, which were always growing,\u201d Johnson said. <\/p>\n

Finally, Nottingham noted that Johnson did not have mental health or substance-abuse issues or social barriers to overcome, which often can push people toward crime. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis defendant had none of that,\u201d he said. \u201cThere was nothing that would keep him from being a law-abiding citizen. <\/p>\n

\u201cInstead he chose crime. He chose theft.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s theft meant that Skico employees, who worked under him and often were paid under performance-based incentives, received lower wages, lower bonuses, less 401k contributions and fewer promotions, according to Kaplan\u2019s letter. <\/p>\n

\u201cDerek was therefore effectively stealing from his own employees and coworkers,\u201d Kaplan wrote. \u201cThis deception was methodical, intentional and remains unfathomable to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, Johnson \u201ccultivated a culture of fear and intimidation within his department,\u201d Kaplan said, and was found to be a \u201ccalculating bully,\u201d according to the senior executive\u2019s letter. <\/p>\n

On Tuesday, Johnson said the bullying allegations \u201chave rocked me to my core.\u201d He said he tried to support and listen to his employees and that it was hard to hear \u201cthat some felt different, and I need to own that as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaplan asked in his letter that Johnson be sentenced to \u201cat least the middle range of the sentencing recommendation.\u201d On Tuesday, Clark said Skico officials had heard that the state\u2019s Probation Department would recommend that Johnson serve only six months in the Pitkin County Jail, some of it on work release, as well as a long probation sentence. <\/p>\n

That recommendation, which was indeed the Probation Department\u2019s suggestion, is not only \u201cinappropriate, but an outrage,\u201d Clark said. \u201cHow can it possibly be a crime deserving of just probation?<\/p>\n

\u201cKids and parents will be watching across the valley (to see what the sentence is).\u201d<\/p>\n

Nottingham said that the probation recommendation trades six months in jail for $3 million, a deal many in the Roaring Fork Valley would likely take \u201cin a heartbeat.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is not a deterrent to steal, but an incentive,\u201d he said. \u201cThe sentence handed down today will reverberate around the valley.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seldin said he understood that fact, and that despite imposing probation for two recent theft\/embezzlement cases involving large amounts of money, Johnson\u2019s actions were more serious and deserved prison. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe community is watching what the court is going to do,\u201d Seldin said. \u201c(A prison sentence) promotes respect for the law by showing that kind of conduct is unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson is unlikely to serve the entire six years in prison. With good behavior, he could be released in two-and-a-half to three years, Nottingham said. <\/p>\n

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

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

Derek Johnson sits in the Pitkin County District Courtroom waiting for his sentencing on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020.Kelsey Brunner \/ The Aspen Times Former Aspen Skiing Co. executive and city Councilman Derek Johnson was sentenced to six years in prison Tuesday for methodically stealing and selling more than 13,000 pairs of company-owned skis worth nearly […]<\/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-803320","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 01:50:59","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\/803320","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=803320"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803320\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}