Tod Wilson, the owner of Mr. Tod’s Pie Factory, is claiming in a lawsuit that Englewood police and city officials falsely arrested him in 2017 and ruined his business.

In February, Wilson closed his retail store in Englewood after seven years, saying it was a "difficult decision."

“As a result of foregoing acts, plaintiff’s business that he owns and operates has lost substantial revenues and profits,” according to the lawsuit. "At the time of his arrest, plaintiff enjoyed a thriving business that was growing daily and was steadily increasing; sales and profits were climbing steadily month to month.”

In December 2017, Wilson was accused of witness tampering, charges that were later dismissed

Wilson said in the lawsuit that “whistle-blower information” was received alleging that a municipal official had learned city police Capt. Timothy Torell conspired to use the law to “falsely imprison and maliciously prosecute” Wilson. The name of the whistle-blower was not identified, but city court Administrator Debbian Barr said she overheard talk in the Municipal Court office about a plan to arrest Wilson. Barr said other people who work in the office also overheard this, the suit says.

Store:Mr. Tod's Pie Factory in Englewood closes its retail store

Along with Torell, city police Detective Christopher Kedersha, city code enforcer Tyree Balmer and Municipal Court employee Danielle Chappelle were named in the lawsuit, along with unnamed police and city officials.

Wilson, the suit says, has “suffered from emotional and financial traumatic stress” since the arrest. In a 75-page lawsuit, he is seeking compensatory damages alleging false arrest and abuse of power.

“From my perspective, there are extremely serious pieces of evidence that form the basis of the complaint that are highly troublesome to set a human being up,” said Wilson’s lawyer, Eric Kleiner.

The framing and false pursuing of charges were done as a quid pro quo between Balmer, Chappelle and Torell, the lawsuit says.

"Obviously that's completely false. Tim Torell has an unblemished police career," said attorney Albert Wunsch, who is representing Torell and Chappelle. "His integrity is beyond reproach. These allegations are egregiously false, and I’m confident my clients will prevail."

Ian Doris, who represents the city, did not return multiple calls for comment.

In 2009, Wilson appeared on an episode of the reality show “Shark Tank.” It was there he talked about his sweet potato pie. He ended up impressing the judges, and that helped him start his pie business, where stars including Alicia Keys became fans of the pies.

Mr. Tod's Pies are still sold in some New Jersey and New York ShopRite stores.

The lawsuit was filed Dec. 26, 2018, in Superior Court in Hackensack.

More New Jersey news

PIZZA:Where to find the best Sicilian and Grandma pies in North Jersey

IRISH SODA BREAD:My grandmother's Irish soda bread was touted on the airwaves

RESTAURANT:Lee's Hawaiian Islander might not be gourmet but, man, it's fun