Gygr Gas owner ordered to pay more than $377,000

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Former Boonville-based propane supplier Gygr Gas was ordered on Wednesday to pay the state of Missouri $377,167.11 in a 2022 lawsuit.

The Attorney General’s Office – then headed by Eric Schmitt – sued Gygr Gas in December 2022 after the company abruptly closed and failed to notify its customers that it would stop making propane deliveries and did not refund customer payments.

The lawsuit was filed against Gygr Gas’ owner Mark Thoele in Cooper County.

Court documents say Thoele is “permanently enjoined from owning, operating, or exercising control over any business or company that solicits or accepts prepaid deposits for any goods, services, or ‘merchandise’ not yet provided to the customer in full.”

The company closed its doors as a cold front hit Mid-Missouri in December 2022. Gov. Mike Parson temporarily waived regulations that prevent gas companies from filling other companies’ tanks, as well as temporarily extending allowable driving hours for propane delivery drivers.