Alongside its complaint, Wright-Patt filed an emergency ex parte, no-bond motion for prejudgment attachment, supported by affidavits from CFO Daniel G. Smith and attorney Peter Georgiton. Five days later on March 12, Greene County Common Pleas Judge Adolfo A. Tornichio granted the motion, freezing ATM Solutions’ US Bank accounts for $815,786.

ATM Solutions claimed in its countersuit that Wright-Patt allegedly made misleading, contradictory and false statements within its ex parte no-bond prejudgment attachment, triggering company’s April 4 closure.

Within hours after the prejudgment attachment was granted, ATM Solutions said its customers were met with dishonored checks while the company lost contracts with its two largest customers, US bank and Fifth Third Bank.

“As a result, (ATM Solutions) was unable to pay its hundreds of employees and could no longer make necessary payments in order to be able to continue its operations, including vault lease and insurance payments for its vehicles or facilities,” ATM Solutions said its countersuit.

The company laid off 190 employees by April 2 and notified clients on April 4 that it could no longer service their ATMs.

ATM Solution claimed $29,296,367 in damages due to the litigation.

The ex parte, no-bond prejudgment attachment froze ATM Solutions assets without first notifying the company. An ex parte motion is a request made to the court without notifying or involving the other party in the case. The prejudgment attachment also did not require the credit union to post a bond, which typically would have been two times the value of the $815,786 debt. The purpose of the bond would have protected ATM Solutions in the event the freeze would have been judged harmful.

In its countersuit, ATM Solutions alleged the ex parte, no bond prejudgment attachment was unlawful because it was labeled a “foreign corporation” not based in Ohio. Though incorporated in Kentucky and headquartered in Dallas, the firm is licensed to operate in Ohio and maintains a Cincinnati office.

Because ATM Solutions holds a license to do business in Ohio, it is exempt from the ex parte, no-bond prejudgment attachment, the company argued. ATM Solutions also contended that its due process rights were violated because it was not given the opportunity to respond to Wright-Patt’s ex-parte, no-bond prejudgment attachment.

Though Wright-Patt agreed to lift the ex parte, no bond prejudgment attachment on March 31, the damage had been done and ATM Solutions was forced to shut down its business four days later.

On April 10, ATM Solutions moved Wright-Patt’s lawsuit to federal court in Dayton.

Six days later on April 16, the credit union filed a motion and requested a hearing on a second prejudgment attachment. Wright-Patt argued this was necessary to ensure ATM Solutions’ assets would be maintained during the course of the litigation.

Wright-Patt is seeking the prejudgment attachment on two legal grounds.

The first was that ATM Solutions promised the credit union a first-priority interest in its assets so that the $815,786 debt would be paid.

However, Wright-Patt determined through its investigation that ATM Solutions pledged the same assets to other lenders. The credit union claimed ATM Solutions allegedly acted with an intent to defraud or that it was never able to give Wright-Patt a first-priority in its assets in first place.

Second, Wright-Patt argued ATM Solutions “criminally contracted” its debt to the credit union because a former ATM Solutions vault manager Raymond Betts was sentenced in March 2024 to 41 months in federal prison after he admitted to stealing $1.4 million from WPCU.
Last week, ATM Solutions filed its opposition to the credit union’s second prejudgment attachment.

The company’s counter argument said the pledged assets to other lenders were part of ordinary financing activity - not done to defraud anyone. ATM Solutions also indicated the debt to the credit union was not criminally contracted because the theft was committed by a former employee on his own, outside of his job duties. ATM Solutions was never charged.

READ MORE: ATM Solutions Response to Wright-Patt CU Lawsuit and Counterclaim.

Peter Strozniak can be reached at [email protected].