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Exhibit 99.1
January 5, 2001
Mr. J. Vincent Ciroli, Jr.
7915 M East Pike
Norwich, OH 43767
Dear Mr. Ciroli:
This letter will acknowledge receipt and acceptance of your resignation as a
director of Belmont Bancorp. As you are aware, because of your breaches of your
fiduciary duty as a director, Belmont Bancorp. in July 1999 removed you as a
director of Belmont National Bank. The Board of Directors of Belmont Bancorp.
also authorized the Chairman of the Board to seek your removal as a director of
Belmont Bancorp. At that time, you refused to resign that position. You have
now done so.
You attribute your resignation to a claimed inability to "function as an
effective director." You argue that the Board of Directors prevented you from
performing your duties as a director. You chronicle events of June 1999 in a
way that is neither accurate nor constructive.
The relevant facts are that:
The Board of Directors provided you with meeting notices and directors'
information packages and you participated in meetings both personally and
by telephone without raising objections as to notice.
The Board of Directors provided you the opportunity to contribute to the
preparation of Belmont Bancorp.'s S-2 Registration Statement and to assure
that the statements contained therein were accurate and not misleading.
You did make limited comments and your comments were taken into account in
preparation of the Registration Statement.
The Board of Directors provided you the further opportunity to contribute
financially to the recapitalization of the Bank along with the other
directors of Belmont Bancorp. You declined to do so.
Since the Board of Directors' discovery of loan losses suffered during your
tenure as President and CEO, the other members of the Board and the Bank's
new President and CEO have acted aggressively to stem the losses and
reverse the Bank's fortunes. The record of the Board's actions is there
for all the world to see--in the improved financial performance of the
Bank, in the substantial personal financial contributions made by other
Belmont Bancorp. directors toward the recapitalization of the Bank, and in
the legal
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actions brought by the Bank against various parties the Bank believes to be
responsible for the loan losses, including via cross claims filed against
S.R. Snodgrass, A.C., in the Fleagane litigation.
Your resignation brings closure to the matter of your participation on the
Board of Directors of Belmont Bancorp. The Board will continue to act in the
best interests of its shareholders.
Very truly yours,
W. Quay Mull, II, Chairman
cc: Board of Directors of Belmont Bancorp.
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
