Tampa Bay Times from St. Petersburg, Florida • 22

4B TIMES FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1997 LOCAL NEWS Rock legends to open new concert venue Missing millionaire a mystery to many 4p Authorities think Jack Donald Lewis may be in Costa Rica but don't know whether he was taken or went there on his own. 4 i' ,1 1 lit 1 Ticket information Legends of the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame, starring Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, the Spinners and Wilson Pickett, will be at Harmony Park, just west of Ridge Road and Regency Park Boulevard in Port Richey, from noon to 9 p.m. Nov. 29. VIP seating, $35; bring your own blanket and chair, $25.

Tickets go on sale Sept. 26. Call toll free (888) 880-8488. Visa and MasterCard accepted. h8 J.

Handout photo Don Lewis is the owner of a 40-acre wildlife sanctuary in Hillsborough County. By DAVID KARP and ERIKA D. PETERMAN Tinws Staff Wrttws TAMPA On the morning millionaire Jack Donald Lewis disappeared, he was wearing a $1 T-shirt from Kmart and blue jeans bought at a yard sale. He left behind an 8-year-old Dodge van with a broken window and battered grill. He also left behind Wildlife on Easy Street, the 40-acre sanctuary in northwest Hillsborough County where he lived and kept more than 100 animals, including lions, leopards, llamas and lemurs.

A month ago, authorities found the van, the keys on the floorboard, at a private airport in Pasco County, where Lewis, who has crashed planes in the past, was known to buy aircraft impulsively with cash. Lewis' disappearance has worried his friends and family, knotted his business affairs and mystified law enforcement. Volunteers from his big-cat sanctuary have distributed more than 1,000 missing person fliers. A psychic has visited his house. On Wednesday, authorities received an unconfirmed report that cr i his wife's urging, but did not return for follow-up visits, she said.

He also told her several times he wanted a divorce, but she said he wasn't serious. "It has been very, very difficult." Carole Lewis said. "It's what you both love and hate about him. I love that free spirit. He could just completely do something way, way out." He's been his own man all his life, boot-strapping himself from Depression-era childhood to financial success through trucking and real estate.

Lewis was born in Dade City to a single mother of three, who sold fresh bread and worked as a seamstress. In high school, he held several jobs, including mechanic and farm hand. He graduated from Pasco High School a year ahead of schedule in 1955. Girls adored him. "He always seemed to know where he was going," said Gladys Cross, Lewis' first wife.

The couple met at the when Lewis, a bag boy, winked at her. Two years after their first date, they married. She was 14; he was 17. Eleven months after that, their first daughter was born. Lewis started hauling rock and sand in Dade City, then bought five dump trucks.

In the early 1960s, he began driving tankers for Texaco and Red Wing Carriers in Tampa. On the side, he bought washing machines, repaired them, and resold them at profit. He invested in used cars, making money at auctions. His next big move was into real estate. Lewis bought bad mortgages from other lenders, then let homeowners remain if they paid him 18 percent interest.

If they made six house payments on time, he would sell the mortgage. If not, he foreclosed. His bank account swelled. Even so, Lewis had a string of hits, including his signature song, Great Balls of Fire and the hard-slamming Whole Lotta Shakin Going On. Pickett's first big hit, I Found a Love, was with the group the Falcons.

He had two other hits as a solo, You Need Me and It's Too Late, before he joined Booker and the MGs to do his big breakthrough hit, In the Midnight Hour. Martha Reeves and the Vandellas were one of the legendary "girl groups" out of Motown. The Vandellas' Heat Ware was No. 1 on the charts and No. 4 on the pop charts, followed by what became the group's signature song, Dancing in the Streets.

The Spinners had limited success at Motown with such hits as I'll Always Love Few and It's a Shame, but went big in both pop and when the group moved to Atlantic Records. Among their chart toppers were Be Around, The Rubber-band Man, Could It Be I'm Falling in Love and the hit remake of Working My Way Back to You. then sold them to buyers impressed by the center's non-profit status. "That was a point of conflict between Don and Carole Lewis said. He wanted to sell the animals.

She wanted to keep them. If Lewis left intentionally, he didn't do much planning. His disappearance created a vacuum of power at his business enterprises, and questions about who had authority to act in his absence. About two weeks ago, according to court records, Carole Lewis entered her husband's office on Broadway. His children accused her of improperly taking documents and asked for a court order to keep her away.

Carole Lewis responded with her own accusations, claiming in court documents that Elizabeth Ann McQueen, Don Lewis' business assistant, secretly transferred $435,273.24 to her own name since May, when Don Lewis began traveling to Costa Rica. McQueen denied taking any money, saying Lewis always kept his assets under different names. "I have done nothing that Mr. Lewis did not instruct me to do," she said. Wendell Williams, a real estate investor who knows Lewis, added, "I don't want anyone to think Mr.

Lewis was not ruthless, because he was." Carole Lewis was attracted to his free spirit. "I just fell in love with him at first sight," said Carole Lewis, now 36, who met him at 19. They carried on an affair for years before his 1990 divorce, she said. Shortly after they married, the couple started Wildlife on Easy Street, a center for exotic cats set on 40 acres of tall pines, high grass and flowering bushes at the end of a dirt road at their home in Citrus Park. Today, they care for more than 100 lynx, ocelots, cougars and leopards, as well as otters, lemurs, llamas and horses.

They nurse animals such as Nicoma, a lion who drags an injured hind leg, and promise to find the unwanted animals permanent homes. Critics say Lewis turned the refuge, which is organized as a Florida not-for-profit corporation, into another business. They say he bought cats cheaply at auctions and By BARBARA L. FREDRICKSEN Times Staff Writer PORT RICHEY Roll over, Beethoven, and tell Tchaikovsky the news. Rock 'n' roll legend Chuck Berry is on his way to Port Richey for a big concert at the new Harmony Park outdoor concert venue on Ridge Road from noon to 9 p.m.

Nov. 29. Also on the way are rock 'n' roll giant Jerry Lee Lewis, Motown act Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, rhythm and blues singer Wilson Pickett and group the Spinners. "We do have confirmation on all these acts," said Phil Citron, the New York agent putting together the contracts for producer-artistic director Joe Vispi and the owners of the 9-acre venue. The show, called Legends of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, is the first in a series of shows at the site near Regency Park Boulevard and Ridge Road.

"We plan to have two shows a month all year-round," Vispi said. The next one will be Dec. 6 and will star the Doobie Brothers, Kansas and Seals and Crofts. Ticket information is not available yet. The show in Port Richey will be the second time that Morelli has brought Berry and Lewis to the Tampa Bay area.

The Boatyard Village Rocking Reunion in February 1990 drew more than 15,000 people. Berry, who turned 71 Thursday, was among the first round of inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Lewis, 62, was often compared with Elvis Presley in the 1950s, but Lewis' wild, hard-edged style was not as commercially appealing then. Former lawyer admits bilking prisoners Times Staff Writer TAMPA A disbarred St. Petersburg lawyer has agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud by accepting $90,000 from federal prisoners and promising them pardons he knew he couldn't secure.

John N. Samaha, 66, admitted in a written plea agreement that he convinced three federal inmates he had sufficient political contacts in Washington, D.C., to obtain presidential pardons and early releases. Samaha could receive up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each of the two counts he is admitting. But the agreement says he may receive credit for admitting responsibility and cooperating with the government. No sentencing date is set.

Samaha had talked of contacting U.S. Sens. Bob Graham, Ted Kennedy and George Mitchell, FBI records state. Samaha asked for a $30,000 non-refundable advance fee followed by between $300,000 and $450,000 in additional payments, his plea agreement states. Samaha could not be reached for comment Thursday evening.

lcwis, was in vusia i.ica, where he owns 200 acres near a volcano. Hillsborough sheriff deputies do not know if someone took him there, if he disappeared on his own, or if he is still alive. In June, Lewis told a Hillsborough circuit judge that his wife threatened to kill him, but the judge did not see a dancer. That same month he visited a psychiatrist at GET MORE BONG FOR YOUR BUCK For diver, sea was way of life 4 By JANE MEINHARDT Times Staff Writer -v i yT -5' .1 iJ CLEARWATER When he stopped by Indian Rocks Tackle and Dive Shop to pick up filled 1 i I 1 -J ft scuDa ianKs mis weeK, Lawrence Lewonas mentioned no particular J- 1 pians otner tnan diving with friends. "It was a trip on Wednesday, it More fish in to see Biologist Karla Jeselson releases yellow goatfish into their new tank at the Florida Aquarium on Thursday.

More than 1,000 fish were collected this summer from the Florida Keys to be displayed at the aquarium. They were put in quarantine until they could be transferred to an exhibit. IS I JA "1 it" friends Barry Cochran and Richard Dimmitt, a member of the well-known family of car dealers. Lewonas, 38, ended up floating on the surface, not breathing. Cochran and Dimmitt tried to resuscitate him, but Lewonas died.

The Coast Guard had no investigator available, so Clearwater police are handling the investigation and will turn it over to the FBI, which is routine when something happens in international waters. Police spokesman Wayne She-lor said a preliminary investigation indicated nothing suspicious about the death. An autopsy was incomplete. Neither Cochran nor Dimmitt, described by Shelor as experienced divers, could be reached Thursday for comments. Lewonas was a professional boat captain who lived in Seminole with his wife.

ana it wasnt anything special, said longtime friend and dive shop owner Bill Greenway. "He had dropped off 10 tanks; we filled them, and he picked them up as normal. He didn't say anything about going any particular place to dive. "He came in at least two or three times a week. He was a real good diver." But something happened to Lewonas on Wednesday during his last dive in the Gulf of Mexico with Times photo JIM STEM Death was 'ultimate sacrifice' for peace in Bosnia police force fit for a democratic society.

Their mission was to advise local police chiefs, monitor police officers, often former soldiers, for incidents of brutaiity and help train a new generation of professional lawmen. Former Citrus County sheriffs investigator Marvin Padgett took up the challenge of bringing order out of war's chaos. He believed in it. Haven't You Always Wanted One? Down Holds In-Stock Layaway Till Christmas .1 I By JAMAL THAUI Times Staff Writer By Howard Miller Reg. $1,185 ON SALE NOW a Diazinon Granules Diazinon 5 Granules Lawn and garden insect control.

Ready to use. Treats up to 5,000 sq. ft. 73521 $00 tj 10 Lb. Large Variety Of Wall, Mantel Desk Tops fil 81 Cl 01 i It also was a lucrative assignment.

Beginning salaries for former American lawmen are about $75,000, about three times the average police salary. But it was the mission that brought them to Bosnia, Armstrong said. you get hurt or get killed," Armstrong said, "it's not worth the money." Padgett believed the mission was worth it. He left the Sheriff's Office in March 1996 and joined the U.N. task force.

Soon after, Expert Antique Clock Repair House Calls Available PHANEUF CLOCK SHOP 4047-4th St. St. Pete I Marvin Padgett died Wednesday in a helicopter crash in Bosnia. I itfXE. Hardware I tm MSWSniCI mm Smm 10-5 Since 1960 822-4473 Back by Popular Demand country fresh off a war, but we are making a difference." And they're learning to adjust.

Food, electricity and running water are luxuries not available every day. A good landlord is one who can make a grenade shield for the window out of a tablecloth. Unlike the soldiers in the peacekeeping force, the U.N. police monitors must live with the people they serve. That is helping Padgett's wife, Sharon, cope with his death.

She flew to Bosnia in June to be with her husband. She, too, lives in Osiak. "I've been speaking with Sharon every day," Fisher said. "It's difficult, but she's dealing with it. She's a strong lady; she understands that things can happen.

"She's just been enjoying being in the country out here. Just like Marvin, she's gotten to know the people in the area, learning the local language and customs." Bosnia is the only region that has agreed to cooperate with the U.N. police monitors. Serbia recently agreed to let their officers be trained. A frigid reception early on has thawed as relations improve between Bosnian police and their foreign monitors.

"Cops will be cops anywhere," Armstrong said. Despite the difficulties, Padgett sought more responsibilities. "He very much enjoyed his job," said Citrus County Sheriff's Sgt. Jack Schliep, a friend of Padgett's. "He was very committed to what he was doing.

He would describe a dozen different programs he started over there. He was thrilled with the inroads the U.N. Forces had made." All of the police advisers know the dangers of Bosnia land mines, heavily armed soldiers, poor living conditions but that doesn't make Padgett's death any easier on them. "Everybody's really shook up," Armstrong said. "I think if he stepped on a mine, it wouldn't have hit quite as hard.

But a crash, it just, I think it's the most terrible way to die there is. "I feel for him, his family, for what he went through, for what they're going through." mwwm They left behind families and homes in places like Inverness, Floral City and Crystal River. They left long careers enforcing the law for the chance to make history in a part of the world where the law isn't respected. And they did it unarmed, trading their familiar semi-automatic pistols for the bright blue berets of the United Nations. It was this challenge that drew some of Citrus County's most experienced officers to Bosnia, a land ravaged by years of brutal ethnic warfare that left a heavily armed population virtually lawless.

Marvin Padgett, 46, a former master investigator for the Citrus County Sheriff's Office, was one of the first to join the International Police Task Force. On Wednesday, he gave his life to the cause. "It is the ultimate sacrifice," said former Inverness police Officer Jack Armstrong, who served with Padgett as a U.N. police adviser. "But he gave it for something he believed in.

He really believed we could make a difference." Padgett and 11 other U.N. peacekeepers died in a fiery helicopter crash 30 miles northwest of the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo. Padgett was reported to be a passenger on board the helicopter, but his death was not confirmed until Thursday. Fog is blamed for obscuring the mountainside that the Soviet-built MI-8 crashed into. Four Ukrainian pilots managed to escape the wreckage, which burst into flames just after the crash.

An investigation has been launched. In early 1996, the first advisers from around the world arrived in Bosnia as part of the Dayton peace accord. Members of the International Police Task Force, they were assigned to build a lillWlni Willi 1 1 mi he recruited several other former Citrus County lawmen to join him. He became a key instructor of Bosnian police officers and re-enlisted in April. "How many times have you heard on the news that the International Police Task Force exists?" Armstrong said.

"It's something that nobody pays attention to. It does a dirty job. It goes everywhere where troops won't go without machine guns and armored personnel carriers. And we go with pickup trucks, and no guns. "These guys are just normal regular police officers.

They're trying to do something to change things there. They're not Rambos; they're just normal people trying to do a job no one else does. "And they're getting it done." Pat Fisher, a former Citrus County sheriff's detective, said by phone Thursday from his rented house in the Sarajevo suburb of Osiak that other former officers share the faith Padgett had. "Those of us over here, we believe in what Marvin has always said," Fisher said. "We are making a difference.

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