STRATEGIC PARTNERS
December 5, 2001
NEW YORK -- A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased the publicly traded securities of Tidel Technologies (NYSE: ATMS - news) during the period April 6, 2000 through Feb. 8, 2001, according to an announcement released by a New York law firm.
The complaint, filed by the law firm Schoengold & Sporn, alleges that Tidel falsely reported its sales of ATMs at a "record' pace. According to the complaint, Tidel's false claims and the consequent artificial inflation of the company's stock price allowed the company to begin trading on NASDAQ, which would have been impossible without the misleading information.
The suit claimed that when Tidel disclosed that orders from its onetime largest customer, now-bankrupt ISO Credit Card Center, would be at "substantially reduced levels for the quarter ending March 31, 2001," Tidel's stock price declined precipitously. The lawsuit alleges that Tidel knew during the time period but did not disclose that CCC was in the process of switching to competing manufacturer NCR and reducing its orders.
Named as defendants in the suit are Tidel; James T. Rash, Tidel's chief executive officer, chief financial officer and chairman of Tidel's Board of Directors; Mark K. Levenick, Tidel's chief operating officer and a director of Tidel; and James L. Britton III and Jerrell G. Clay, both directors of Tidel.
The case is pending in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas before Judge David Hittner. Any subsequently filed cases relating to the same facts are expected to be consolidated into this case.
Shareholders of Tidel who purchased stock during dates in question and wish to participate in the litigation or obtain more information may contact the lawyers handling the case by calling Ashley Kim at (212) 964-0046 or Joel P. Laitman at (914) 390-9087 or by e-mailing the company at shareholderrelations@spornlaw.com.
