Thirty-two individual complaints are cited in the document against Repo Ranch. Among them are breach of contract, money due, fraud and conspiracy, and negligent misrepresentation.

According to the complaint, the plaintiffs charge that "Repo Ranch was operated pursuant to a scheme by Defendant James D. Schneider whereby James D. Schneider controlled and managed all the finances of Repo Ranch Inc. and diverted the income, revenue and profits of Repo Ranch inc. to his own personal use and benefit."

As stated in the documentation, the defendants "solicited business from various credit unions throughout the States of California and Oregon by guaranteeing them, in writing, that Repo Ranch Inc. will sell vehicles on the credit unions' behalf and pay each credit union an agreed upon dollar amount."

It continued to read that, "To further induce the credit unions' business and the acquisition of vehicles," the defendants "guaranteed, in writing, that if the vehicles are not sold within a specified period of time, Repo Ranch Inc. will pay each credit union a pre-determined specified amount of money."

Specifically, Repo Ranch agreed to pay:

Glendale City Employees FCU $17,200 if a 1999 Dodge Ram 1500 V8 was sold within 60 days, and $14,100 if it was not sold by that time;

Marion & Polk Schools CU $19,275 if a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4WD was sold within 60 days, and $15,760 if it was not;

Fresno Police Department Credit Union $24,150 for a 1999 Chevrolet Suburban if it was sold within 60 days, and $19,630 if it wasn't;

Kern Central CU $10,796 for a 1997 Chevrolet Camaro if it was sold within 60 days, and $9,229.75 if it wasn't;

Colton School Employees $8,553 for a 1996 Nissan Maxima V6 if it was sold within 60 days, and $7,078.75 if it wasn't.

Speaking to Credit Union Times, Barry Smith said it's not unusual for a credit union that takes possession of a vehicle a member defaults on, to sell the vehicle as a way to mitigate any damages. Auto auctions are one of the popular methods used.

Smith said this wasn't the first time he's had to handle complaints from credit unions lodged against Repo Ranch. "This has been going on for three or four years," he said. In total, he estimated over 50 credit unions have been affected, but some have already settled with Repo Ranch.

In the past though, he was able to get Repo to pay credit unions monies owed without filing a complaint in court. This latest time, Smith wasn't as lucky.

He said when he went to try to find the company, Schneider had closed the doors and opened another business.

"Word started spreading among credit unions, one began telling another about what had happened to them, and they began to realize how many of them had been affected," said Smith.

Smith said he talked with Schneider's lawyer about the situation before the complaint was filed and "they chose to ignore us, so now we're going to litigate."

Alan Hansen, general counsel for MAPS CU, said the credit union had dealings with Repo Ranch before this and never had any problems. "What they guaranteed us sounded good," said Hansen.

Hansen would like to believe the situation with Repo Ranch is an isolated case. "Most auto auction houses are reputable and follow through on what they promise," he said. Still he advised credit unions considering getting involved with an auto auction house to do due diligence and investigate the business thoroughly. He said MAPS loss prevention staff goes to auto auctions in-state several times a year to witness how the outfits conduct their business. It's a little different though, he said, when you're dealing with an out-of-state business.

Hansen said MAPS also filed a claim with CUMIS, but the credit union hadn't heard back from them yet. [email protected]