Cover Story

By Kevin Lee Associate Editor

Thomas Ranes drove many roads from the sultry Gulf Coast to sub-arctic Alaska, but one trip to the woods took him straight to prison.

The Bay Minette native moved to America’s last frontier in 1995 to strike a claim for entrepreneurship and self-reliance, but along the way fell into a venture that carried him across international borders, the boundaries of law and into realms of ultimate violence.

Setting it up

In some ways, Anchorage, Alaska wasn’t so foreign to Ranes. With a metropolitan population of nearly 380,000, it was close in size to Mobile, the city just a stone’s throw from his hometown. And like Mobile, it was nestled near the sea.

The hearty individualism common to Alaskans and their love of the outdoors was reminiscent of the folks back in Alabama.

In his early 20s, Ranes took a job with drilling company Poole Arctic and eventually saved enough to launch his own enterprise, a welding business run out of a truck. That eventually grew in to a small shop and then a larger one followed.

Ranes met a girl and they married, then the couple welcomed a pair of children. It seemed to be a slice of the American dream, but federal authorities now say what fueled it all was an illicit trade.

According to prosecutors, Ranes’ future changed when he crossed paths with Tom Cody, a Minnesota native described by friends as “a good guy,” an avid outdoorsman who dabbled in realty. At 5-foot-10 and 200 pounds, Cody’s mother, Nada Mortensen, called the blue-eyed blond a “Brad Pitt look-a-like.”

Cody served as a Navy medic assigned to the Marines during the Persian Gulf War. Once stateside, he moved through a variety of jobs: running a hotel shuttle service, carpentry, asbestos removal and managing a juice bar. His latest foray found him partnered with Joe Bryant in real estate ventures.

But the men had another side project they hoped to keep more discrete.

According to federal authorities, by 2000 Cody and Bryant implemented connections to import illegal drugs, mostly marijuana with some ecstasy, from the Canadian cities of Whistler and Vancouver into Anchorage.

The same authorities claim Ranes, a part owner of Ranes & Shine Auto Welding & Towing in South Anchorage along with Nopenone Dennis Shine, was a valued factor in the network. They say he began by welding secret compartments into flatbed trucks, graduated into driving the vehicles and then ended up running the supply operations altogether.

The business became lucrative and extensive. It included a structured division of labor common to many legitimate operations with members specializing in supply, vehicle modification, others in driving, and others in distribution or finance.

Authorities said they ended up shipping hundreds of pounds of British Columbia marijuana, or “BC Bud,” in 20-by-8-by-2-foot compartments at six-week intervals. Drugs were also stashed in spare tires, snow machine trailers and fuel tank compartments. The cumulative estimate from law enforcement was more than a ton of marijuana.

Before long, Thomas’ father, James Robert Ranes, came to Alaska to drive shipments and deal with finances according to the testimony of accomplice Rodney Rhoden.

Federal authorities claim $1.3 million of an estimated $10 million dollars grossed were sprinkled into various accounts at Anchorage banks in $10,000 increments. Money that “smelled like marijuana” and “seemed to have been literally put through a washing machine with detergent” ended up in the Rane & Shine’s account at Northrim Bank.

The elder Ranes’ participation traveled beyond more borders. James Robert Ranes has admitted to involvement that includes arranging $600,000 in international wire transfers from Alabama to a Latvian bank. The money was laundered through Thomas Ranes’ auto business, then the father not only deposited it in Eastern European accounts – including $190,000 to a bank in Odessa, Ukraine – but also invested in real estate in Anchorage, Alabama and Ukraine.

Allen R. Bentley, Thomas Ranes’ defense attorney, claimed the purchase of Ukrainian real estate is false. “That’s flat out wrong,” Bentley said recently. “My client has no property in Ukraine. He’s not a rich man.”

Federal indictments said as the income climbed, so did the stakes and methods. “It was part of the conspiracy for the conspirators to use violence and firearms to maintain control of and protect the conspiracy, to ensure the repayment of debts, and to intimidate potential competitors or to remove members of the conspiracy.”

Named conspirator Joshua Murphy stated one member threatened to start his own offshoot business at some point and Cody wanted to put a stop to it. Murphy said he hired someone to arrange for the troublemaker’s legs to be broken with a baseball bat. The statement became stronger when the hired enforcers instead shot the man five times on Jan. 10, 2003.

The victim survived the assault.

Spoiled

Money was flowing and things appeared easy, but success often brings sloppiness.

Cody tried to fly beneath the radar. His real estate ventures with Bryant continued as they bought 29 acres on the edge of a lucrative development project. Otherwise, he lived a relatively low-key life, remaining in his rented house and carrying on as usual.

Ranes, on the other hand, enjoyed the fruits of his labor and prosecutors say he bought a golf cart, a speed boat and a race car.

In 2005, authorities maintain Ranes borrowed money from Cody and couldn’t repay the funds so Cody seized Ranes’ race car in return. When Ranes’ wife threatened to expose the drug operation, Cody called in associates to strong arm Ranes and keep his wife’s mouth shut.

In May of that year, a drug run from Whitehorse, Yukon Territory in Canada ran into problems. Canadian authorities intercepted the runners and seized more than $1 million worth of marijuana. Cody focused his anger on Ranes and associate William Yancy showed up to again rough up the auto shop owner.

Still, American authorities were already looking into the operation. Federal representatives are reluctant to reveal an exact time frame as to when the investigation began, but U.S. Attorney Tom Bradley, lead attorney in the still-pending prosecution, described it as “several years” in the making.

According to Dennis Shine, Ranes was finally tired of dealing with Cody. Between May 27 and June 1, Shine said he and Ranes formulated a plan for Cody’s removal. Along the way, they would wrest control of $1 million dollars in transport to Canada.

Shine created a silencer for a 9mm Beretta pistol at the auto shop.

On Wednesday, June 1, 2005, things were looking up for Tom Cody. The city of Anchorage offered to buy 12 acres of the land he and Bryant had near the development. Robin Ward, the municipal real estate director told the Anchorage Daily News the city was willing to pay the appraised rate of $1.3 million dollars to turn the land into a park and baseball fields. She said Don Smith, a business associate of Cody’s, picked up a draft contract for the sale the previous week. A meeting was arranged for the next afternoon.

Cody phoned his mother. Mortensen told reporters she questioned her only child about a mushroom she found, then cut the conversation short since a favorite television investment program – “Mad Money” – was beginning.

“He said, ‘Make me some money and don’t eat the mushroom,’” Mortensen recalled.

Cody went to neighbor Cande McGovern’s home for a quick lunch. McGovern said they talked about his dance lessons and a future trip to Spain. He told her he was going on a hike that afternoon and left.

Authorities now say Cody wasn’t bound for a trek on the trails but instead had marijuana packed for sale, drug packaging materials and $11,000 in cash.

Shine claimed Ranes had dropped him off near Cody’s house by that point in the afternoon. The assassin waited inside.

Around 2:30 p.m., Cody arrived. The trigger man found his mark.

Shine phoned Ranes, who then returned the call on a prepaid cellular phone. They devised further plans.

The killer loaded the body into the back of Cody’s white 2004 Ford Explorer and headed to a rendezvous with Ranes on the Seward Highway, south of Anchorage. The long sub-arctic summer afternoons provided plenty of time, but little cover.

They then drove to the more secluded Jim Creek area in the Mat-Su Valley. The body was dumped, the vehicle ignited.

Shine drove to Fairbanks as Ranes went back to town.

Thursday arrived. Cody missed the meeting with Ward about the real estate deal.

McGovern, who claimed Cody called her every day, grew suspicious by Friday. An early morning trip to his house found the shoes he used for hiking still on his porch and his rock climbing gear there. She filed a missing persons report with Anchorage police and organized friends in a search.

“We started searching Friday morning, at 9 a.m.,” McGovern told reporters. “We searched every trail head south of Tudor. We sent my husband out. We searched ‘til 11 o’clock at night. No car. No Tom.”

As the search carried on, Thomas Ranes and Joe Bryant are alleged to have rifled through Cody’s house looking for cash.

Cody’s mother flew in from Minnesota.

On June 5, 2005, Cody’s vehicle was found burned at the end of a four-wheeler trail off Glenn Highway north of Anchorage, torched so badly the vehicle identification number was partially destroyed.

By late September, police let the public know Cody “may have been in control of a large sum of money when he disappeared.”

The nights grew long, but official eyes stayed wide open.

Spring into action

When the yearly thaw began in 2006, authorities were ready.

On April 22, 2006, federal and state investigators seized nearly 350 pounds of marijuana from Ranes’ and Shine’s shop.

In a search of nine locations, they grabbed 17 vehicles, $90,000 in cash, gold bullion and 14 firearms including a machine gun. They also seized Ranes’ family home appraised at $650,000 and a neighbor’s property worth an estimated $225,000.

In addition to the drug charges, the Ranes father and son were indicted for international money laundering.

In May of 2006, Joe Bryant, recently diagnosed with cancer, committed suicide.

In the summer of 2006, Ranes claimed the government got it wrong, telling family and friends via a Web site “I want people to know that I am not a kingpin, drug trafficker, money launderer or had anything to do with Tom Cody’s disappearance.”

As the year unfolded, so did the number of conspirators indicted, the total eventually reaching 17 members, both Americans and Canadians alike. Four of the named conspirators remain at large in Canada, including some known merely as “Baldie” and “the Photographer.” One is at large in Australia. No formal extradition has been sought to date.

James Robert Ranes pleaded guilty to charges in the fall of 2006 according to U.S. Attorney Tom Bradley.

In December, authorities unveiled allegations that Ranes and Shine murdered Tom Cody.

On July 5, 2007, Cody’s body was finally discovered in the Jim Creek area and identified. Ranes and Shine were slotted for trial in October.

Five of the conspirators filed guilty pleas in September, among them Joshua Murphy and William Yancy. All told, the men also surrendered over $500,000 in cash and five vehicles to authorities in the deal. They are scheduled for sentencing in May 2008.

On Nov. 19, 2007, Dennis Shine entered a guilty plea and offered testimony corroborating federal allegations. Shine described the operation and chain of events leading to Cody’s murder along with precise roles in the crime.

Shine is facing a maximum life sentence with a mandatory of 10 years behind bars as well as deportation.

Thomas Ranes, however, still maintains his innocence.

“My client is not guilty on all charges,” defense attorney Allen Bentley said. “He’s just a hard-working guy who had a little success.”

“You know, I’m an appointed defender,” Bentley said. “My client is not a rich man.” He feels Ranes’ lack of resources is evidence in itself he doesn’t fit the picture painted by prosecution.

Thomas Ranes is scheduled for trial on April 14, 2008.

Calls to the Ranes’ Baldwin County house were unanswered.

Kevin Lee is Lagniappe associate editor. Contact him at klee@lagniappemobile.com.

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