Jonathan "Jody" Duea and his wife, Whitney Bales Duea, own Neuse River Commons, an office and retail complex in downtown Smithfield that has long struggled to attract tenants. Whitney Duea operates a dental practice there.

The Dueas filed for bankruptcy protection on April 29 - about two weeks after a Smithfield cardiologist sued Jody Duea. Dr. Frank Wefald, owner of Millenia Cardiovascular, leases office space in Neuse River Commons. According to the doctor's civil complaint, Jody Duea managed Millenia's finances and Wefald's personal accounts as Wefald's office manager from February 2009 to September 2010.

Wefald claims Duea misused the doctor's money and racked up more than $60,000 in banking fees by opening and using a secret account with Four Oaks Bank. The bank is also named in the suit. Wefald and his attorney, Kieran Shanahan of Shanahan Law Group in Raleigh, accuse Duea of "constructive fraud" and of "robbing Millenia and the Wefalds blind."

Duea attributed the late fees and Millenia's sudden financial woes to absent or slow Medicare payments, according to the complaint. Duea also blamed Wefald's problems on the enormous outlay of money needed to maintain the doctor's horses.

In October 2010, Wefald filed for personal bankruptcy - a move he said he made to prepare for his complaint against Duea.

In the Dueas' bankruptcy filing, Millenia, Wefald and his wife, Vicky, are named as creditors. The Dueas also owe $682,000 to Four Oaks Bank, according to the filing.

Other creditors include Susan Simpson, Whitney Duea's partner in the dental practice, and the Johnston County tax office. The Dueas owe back taxes on the Neuse River Commons property.

In a statement sent to news outlets, Duea blames another civil complaint tor his bankruptcy filing. In May 2010, RBC Bank sued Duea and his Wilmington restaurant, Two Guys Grille.

The bank claims it had loaned money to another restaurant that Duea later bought. Duea took on the debt, but shifted his assets to another business entity while continuing to operate the restaurant, according to the complaint. The restaurant, Bear Rock Cafe, has six locations around the state, but the one Duea owned, in a Wilmington mall, recently closed.

For his part, Duea says he has no ties to the Bear Rock Café owners, and he's paid back all of the money he owes RBC Bank. But the costs of defending the RBC lawsuit prompted the bankruptcy filing, he said.

"Facing such a personal onslaught by RBC Bank, I had no recourse but to seek the protections afforded me by the United States Bankruptcy Court," Duea said in the statement.

News Researcher Peggy Neal contributed to this report.