JENNINGS, MO – Federal prosecutors have filed charges against John S. Wonders, the owner of a former bowling ball factory that caught fire in October 2019. Wonders, who purchased Faball Enterprises, Inc. in the late 1980s, had been operating the factory at 8700 Xograph Avenue in Jennings under the name Visionary Bowling Products, LLC.

In 2018, the City of Jennings acquired the property due to unpaid taxes, and the business ceased production by 2019. By August of that year, the city notified Wonders to vacate the property by October 20. Prosecutors allege that from July to October 2019, John Wonders and Jason Wonders improperly stored or abandoned hazardous chemicals at the facility without a permit, violating federal environmental laws under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

A significant fire broke out at the vacant facility on October 21, 2021, prompting evacuations of nearby homes and businesses due to potential hazards. More than a dozen fire departments responded, and the Jennings School District issued a shelter-in-place order. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources later discovered hundreds of decaying containers of hazardous materials at the site.

Both John and Jason Wonders have been charged with unlawful storage of hazardous waste.