NORFOLK, Va. — A brewery in Norfolk could be facing legal action from people claiming they’ve done business with the brewery.
“It hurts," said hop grower Matt Miles.
Miles is a hop grower in Wisconsin and a provider of hops to Armed Forces Brewing Company’s Norfolk brewery.
An invoice he shared with WTKR News 3 shows he provided more than $2,300 worth of hops from his farm to the brewery in January, which he says he hasn’t been paid for.
As we've reported, Armed Forces Brewing Company announced on March 6 that they're relocating out of Norfolk because of what the company’s CEO calls a "woke mob."
This stems from pushback the company has gotten locally in response to a company executive criticizing the Navy on social media for using a drag queen to promote recruitment.
Watch: LGBT Life Center weighs in as Armed Forces Brewing Company announces move from Norfolk
“We’re definitely going to be hurting from not receiving this payment from them," said Miles.
Miles said he has, however, been paid for a previous shipment of hops.
As a Marine Corps veteran, he reached out to the company a few years ago and was excited to be able work with them.
Watch: Despite controversy, Armed Forces Brewing Company opens doors in Norfolk's Ghent neighborhood
“It’s a company that I thought I had something in common with, that I could trust," Miles said.
As of Monday, he had started discussing legal options with an attorney.
“I can’t say I’m happy at all about this situation," Freelance Security, LLC President and CEO Vernon Clifton said.
Clifton is also exploring his legal options.
He said his Portsmouth-based company hadn’t been paid the money he said Armed Forces Brewing Company owed his company for providing security at the Norfolk brewery.
He admits he could’ve stopped providing service when he stopped getting paid, but wanted to give the company a chance.
Watch: Armed Forces Brewing Company to hold food & toy drive for military families in need
“We do realize with the way the world is, customers do have a hard time paying vendors or paying their employees," said Clifton. "We had built a good relationship with them and like I said, we do have veterans who work for us as well as former police officers. So everyone was dedicated to just stay on board and ride it out.”
A notice from the Norfolk Treasurer’s Office was posted on the brewery’s door as of Monday, saying the property and any other company property in Virginia will be levied or sold as needed to pay taxes the company owes.
Online records Monday showed the company owed close to $13,000 in real estate taxes.
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An SEC filing shows the company had also lost close to $2 million before opening the Norfolk location.
WTKR News 3 has repeatedly reached out by phone and email to the company’s CEO for comment, but as of Monday afternoon, he had not responded.
As of Monday, the company had not said where they will be relocating to or when, only that it would be moving out of state.
