PORTLAND – A Saco water park that owes nearly $1 million to a New York man who was injured there does not have state-mandated liability insurance.

And last year, Aquaboggan Water Park was open from June to September even though it didn’t have a permit to operate, Maine Public Broadcasting reported.

The state’s assistant fire marshal said the water park’s owners could face criminal charges.

But Ladd Alcott also admitted that state officials did not adequately review Aquaboggan’s insurance coverage and failed to shut down the park last August when an inspector learned the truth.

The water park’s problems began to surface after it was hit by a $965,000 jury verdict in February.

The lawsuit stemmed from a July 2000 accident in which Andrew Slater suffered four broken ribs, abdominal injuries and a ruptured spleen at the popular amusement park along Route 1.

A water-slide attendant mistakenly released Slater, 40, too soon, and he crashed into another patron. Slater was sent home from the hospital prematurely in agonizing pain and nearly bled to death.

He filed suit, and two months ago a unanimous Maine jury ruled in his favor.

Terry Garmey, Slater’s attorney, said that throughout the case the water park’s operators led him to believe they had a $1 million insurance policy with a $100,000 deductible.

But about three weeks after the verdict came in, Garmey learned that was not the case.

Aquaboggan owner John Glessner had not provided liability insurance, a requirement for his license to operate and a violation of state law, for three years.

“The policy that was provided to us under oath as representative of the policy that was in force at the time of our accident was, in fact, for an egg production facility in Clarion, Iowa,” Garmey said. “And it expired six months before Mr. Slater went down the slide at Aquaboggan.”

Glessner owns and operates at least one egg-processing facility in Iowa that most recently was the subject of a crackdown by the Immigration and Naturalization Service for allegedly hiring illegal migrant workers.

In 1996, Glessner was convicted of assaulting and falsely imprisoning an 18-year-old Hispanic worker with duct tape.

He’s also a longtime business associate of embattled Turner egg farm owner Jack DeCoster, who was fined more than $3 million for health and safety violations.

Glessner managed payroll for DeCoster until he and former farm spokeswoman Sally Christner bought the water park three years ago.

Neither Christner nor Glessner returned calls for comment.

Their attorney, Tim O’Brien, said the two mistakenly thought they were paying for necessary coverage.

“They requested that the insurance company add them for both workers’ comp and general liability,” O’Brien said. “And they ended up doing it for workers’ comp but apparently not for liability.”

O’Brien said his clients paid premiums for a general liability policy.

Alcott, the assistant state fire marshal, said he was shocked when he found out Aquaboggan had no insurance and had been operating illegally for the past three summers. Alcott’s office is responsible for enforcement.

“Obviously nobody wants to be in this situation,” Alcott said. “I have taken the responsibility for the office in it, and we will make the corrections necessary. And I also will be following up with enforcement action.”

Alcott said the state could file criminal charges against park operators for failing to produce the required certificate of insurance and for operating the park without proper insurance or a permit.

He also acknowledged that employees in the Fire Marshal’s Office fell down on the job on several occasions.

Two of the state employees involved with the case since have retired.

Alcott emphasized that Aquaboggan’s insurance problems are not a reflection on the safety of rides at the park.

And O’Brien said his clients have every intention of securing adequate insurance and opening the park again this summer.

The only question is whether Slater will be awarded his $965,000 judgment.

Aquaboggan has appealed the verdict. Attorneys are attempting to negotiate a settlement.