Note that if you're an employee instead of a contractor like in this case, your state very possibly has a unit that hounds companies that don't pay your final paycheck(s).

I and a number of coworkers had to do this in Virginia when a couple of investors (worth $600 million between them) revealed they were devils rather than angels. The process was pain free compared to the "sue them" route tallyho00 had to follow (the state employee(s) we dealt with were experienced and had heard it all before), and in theory it was backed up by their (in)action being an misdemeanor.

Kudos to tallh00 for cutting them off promptly and pursuing them, we need a more feedback like that in the system.