*UPDATE * Whole Foods not first to file suit against Pastor Brown
*UPDATE* 4/20/16
FOX 7 has obtained documents confirming that a lawsuit was filled last month against Pastor Jordan Brown in a matter completely unrelated to the Cake sold at Whole Foods. The suit filed on March 11th claims that Brown owes more than $24,000 in unpaid student loans.
According to the lawsuit, Brown "ceased making payments on the Student Loan, thereby creating a default."
READ THE FULL LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST BROWN OVER DEFAULT LOAN
A lawsuit against Whole Foods was filed by Pastor Jordan Brown on Monday. Now Whole Foods is fighting back.
They released surveillance video and are detailing why they think his claims are false.
The tables have turned - from people thinking a local pastor was the target of a homophobic attack, to people wondering if it was all a hoax.
"If he were to have done that, honestly, that's pretty messed up from my own opinion. I feel like it gives a bad name to the gay community, that somebody would do that," Jessica Jones, Whole Foods customer.
Pastor Jordan Brown says he went to the Whole Foods at 5th and Lamar to order a cake April 14th. He says he asked for "love wins" to be written on the top, but claims a slur was also written in icing.
"We can refer the viewers and the world to the video my client took that's available on YouTube and shows the cake is sealed with the Whole Foods sticker on it," says Austin Kaplan, attorney for Pastor Jordan Brown.
FOX 7 tested it out. We bought a cake from Whole Foods and asked for writing on top. You can see the label on the bottom. So what would happen if we tried to take it off?
We were able to remove the seal several times without tearing it.
"If he actually did do that on his own, then Whole Foods had no hands in it at all. I think it's pretty shady," says Shannon Overland, Whole Foods customer.
Whole Foods filed a counter-lawsuit against the pastor on Tuesday. It reads:
"The cake was in the sole possesion and control of Mr. Brown from the time it left WFM until he posted a video showing the slur and publishing his false statement to the general public. Mr. Brown acted with malice and has damaged the reputation and business of WFM."
The company also released security video. Whole Foods says the label is clearly on top, Brown says it was at the bottom. Secondly, they point out that the writing was visible to him through the clear portion of the packaging.
We received a statement from Brown's attorney Tuesday:
"At this time we are aware of the Whole Foods' press release, the alleged security video, and the countersuit by Whole Foods against Pastor Brown, and we are currently investigating these allegations."
Brown is pastor of the Church of Open Doors, an LGBT welcoming congregation in Austin.
On the Facebook page there are multiple posts in which he says they are moving to a new location and asking for donations to help expand. We went to the address listed for the church and found nothing, just an apartment complex.
"If it did happen, then that's awful because you know, love does win either way. If the person deliberately sabotaged his own cake for some kind of money or whatever shady situation, then that's wrong," says Overland.
Read Whole Foods plans to take legal action over cake controversy
Read Pastor claims Whole Foods sold a cake with a homophobic slur