State: Old Thunder firm owes $74,000

The state filed a warrant this week seeking to collect more than $74,000 in delinquent sales taxes from the corporation that used to own the Wichita Thunder hockey team.

The Thunder's current management said it was surprised when it received the warrant.

"We were told it was a done deal," said Joel Lomurno, general manager of the Thunder. "We got a letter from them two days ago for the first time in two years. It was a surprise to everyone here."

The Thunder, a member of the Central Hockey League, was the first long-term tenant to sign a lease with the new Intrust Bank Arena in downtown Wichita. The team previously played at the Kansas Coliseum.

Lomurno said the action should have no effect on team operations.

"It's a non-issue for us," he said.

Lomurno said the sales tax debt should have been taken care of in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed in November 2004.

The warrant claims Wichita Hockey Inc., or Wichita Thunder, owes $74,713 in sales taxes from February 2003 to October 2004.

The Thunder reorganized through the bankruptcy and is now owned by WIHO LLC.

State revenue officials say they don't issue warrants on old bankruptcy debts.

"We would be barred from filing a warrant on a debt that was discharged in bankruptcy," said Dedra Platt, public service executive at the Department of Revenue.

The Thunder's attorney was on vacation this week and could not be reached.

Lomurno said that he had been in contact with the former financial director of the company, who had been trying to negotiate with the Department of Revenue.

"We're a different company," Lomurno said. "Wichita Hockey Inc. doesn't exist anymore."

Before the current company, the Thunder was owned by KH LLC, which also owned the Wichita Wingnuts baseball team. Chicago businessman Horn Chen has owned the Thunder since the team's inception, through Wichita Hockey Inc., KH LLC and WIHO LLC.

Platt said the department looks at different ways to collect debts from companies that have dissolved.

"Sometimes, there's still assets we can attach to," Platt said. "They also look at the officers of the corporation to see if they can be held responsible for the debt.

"Every case is different."

The Thunder hasn't had a winning season since 2005-06. But the team is hoping to rebuild under new coach Kevin McClelland, a former Stanley Cup champion and successful CHL coach. McClelland was hired in April.

The team filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 30, 2004, the same day as a trial began in federal court for a lawsuit filed by former general manager Bill Shuck.

Lomurno worked for the Thunder in 2004 as a public relations director but wasn't in management.

"It came out of the blue, no one here knows anything about it," he said. "We thought it was taken care of."

This story was originally published July 3, 2010 at 12:00 AM with the headline "State: Old Thunder firm owes $74,000."