West Alton Marina remains silent, bans media from property

ALTON — West Alton Marina is facing a wave of controversy since owner Brian Fortier, and his husband and marina manager John Murray, are both facing allegations of sexual harassment of underage employees. In addition to criminal charges, at least five victims have filed civil suits against the marina as of this writing.

So far, the marina is declining requests for interview, banning media from its property, and referring reporters to company lawyers for comment. 

The allegations have shocked, and in some cases, disgusted the public. It’s not clear if any customers of West Alton Marina have pulled their boats out of discomfort with the allegations, but if they did, there’s not many places for them to go. 

No competing marinas on Winnipesaukee would speak on the record, but the theme of limited availability was evident.

A few West Alton Marina customers were present at the property on a recent afternoon. Most claimed ignorance of the current situation, or declined to comment, but some mentioned that the waiting list for a slip at West Alton is years long. 

“I rented a slip this year. I was on the list for a slip for three years,” said customer Larry Shamer. 

“My wife is a little disturbed about it. We were totally blown away. We had no idea John was like that. Such a friendly guy.”

Shamer's new slip is at one of the most coveted docks at the marina, referred to as "Skid Row." When asked if he knew of any customers leaving West Alton due to the current allegations, Shamer replied, “I think the person that I got the slip from.” Shamer said. “Nobody wants to leave Skid Row. This is the place where everything happens. I’m like 'How the (expletive) did I get skid row?’ I was thinking I was gonna get a new slip or something, there was like four that went empty. That never happens.”

It’s not entirely clear what drove these vacancies. The Sun reached out to Fortier's sister and company co-owner Deirdre Tibbits for comment, but Tibbits referred the paper to West Alton Marina’s lawyers. The Sun reached out to the law firm, but the attorney authorized to speak for the marina was not available. 

After visiting the marina to speak to customers and management, the business banned all Daily Sun reporters from entering the property in the future. According to the Alton Police Department, the marina also banished WMUR from the property one week prior. 

The impact on the boating community at large also remains to be seen. Both businesses and boaters seem to be silent on the matter. When people do talk, they do so with caution. Such was the approach of Malcolm Cook, commander of the Lakes Region Sail & Power Squadron.

“Some people I've talked to say their boats are there and they’re fine with the service,” Cook said. “I haven’t heard of anybody leaving whatsoever.”

Cook said he wanted to wait for the justice system to do its work before he shares his personal thoughts on the allegations of sexual misconduct. 

“Let the courts make a decision with a jury of their peers,” Cook stated. “I believe in the rule of law and the law says they have to have a fair trial, so I’m not going to prejudge anybody.”