Ant Anstead’s Radford Motors Files for Bankruptcy After Alleged Fraud (Exclusive)

Ant Anstead‘s bespoke carmaker, Radford Motors, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The Oct. 22 filing came after he was accused of fraud and misrepresentation, according to documents obtained by PEOPLE.

The master mechanic and TV host was a cofounder of the company, which revived the formerly defunct British automaker Radford, in August 2020 with the goal to build custom, high-end sports cars.

Anstead and one of his business partners, Formula One champ Jenson Button, starred in the five-part docuseries Radford Reborn in April 2023, which followed the creation of their Lotus-Radford Type 62-2 supercar.

“This is personally a huge risk for me,” Anstead told PEOPLE in April of the high stakes business venture in an exclusive interview. “We have seven people, and we privately funded this. We are doing it. We’re risking everything.”

The small team’s masterpiece was “a reimagined version of the fabled Lotus Type 62,” according to a press release. When the doc aired, the vehicle had already won a major award at the motorsports festival Goodwood, beating out Ferrari, McLaren, Lamborghini, Bugatti and others, Anstead noted.

The company’s bankruptcy filing comes after one of his business partners, Pastor (Pat) Velasco, filed a lawsuit against the TV star and one of his co-founders, Daniel Bednarski, on March 8 in Orange County Superior Court, claiming he’s owed $2 million.

Several months later, on July 24, another complaint was filed by co-owner, Roger N. Behle Jr., alleging Anstead and Bednarski mismanaged the company’s finances.

The July complaint alleges that back in January, Anstead and Bednarski — who the filing claims was Anstead’s life coach prior to becoming Radford’s chief financial officer — secured a new sale of $100,000. However, hours after the money was wired, Anstead and Bednarski “took $54,635.52 from this deposit and used it to pay a vendor for work unrelated to the new client’s vehicle,” the complaint reads.

It continues, “Twenty-nine minutes after the first wire was sent, Bednarski took more of the new client’s funds and paid himself $20,000 via wire.”

The suit further claims that they allegedly paid for personal expenses like auto insurance with company funds.

On April 26, the company filed a counterclaim against Velasco, Behle and others. (Behle declined to comment and Velasco couldn’t be reached).

In a statement to PEOPLE on Wednesday, Bednarski explained the decision to file for bankruptcy,

“Radford Motors is going through a Chapter 11 Business restructure that will be implementing strategic changes to strengthen our foundation for the future. During this process, it’s expected that certain ownership transitions will occur, which is an important step in our evolution. We are excited about the road ahead and remain focused on continuing business as usual with renewed energy and purpose.”

Bednarski, adds that the company is “committed to its legacy of unparalleled craftsmanship and excellence. This pivotal move ensures the company will continue to exceed client expectations and shape the future of luxury vehicles.”

Anstead’s attorney could not be reached for comment.

Speaking to PEOPLE about the company in 2023, Anstead said, “I knew that we were taking on a monumentally difficult project in an industry that’s really tough, because we are up against some big brands with some big funding. We just had to collectively believe in what we were doing.”

At the time, Anstead maintained his project would be a success.

“We are now moving into production,” he shared from the new Radford headquarters in Costa Mesa, California. “We’ve sold a number of cars to collectors all over the world, and we are now delivering those cars.”

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Those outside the automotive world may know Anstead better from his days on HGTV — he was married to Christina on the Coast star Christina Haack from 2018 until 2021, and the pair share son, Hudson, 5 — or from his current relationship with Oscar winner Renée Zellweger.

Anstead and Zellweger met on the set of his discovery+ show Celebrity IOU: Joyride, on which he helped her restore a pair of vintage cars for two deserving brothers. They confirmed they were dating in June 2021 and currently live together in Laguna Beach, Calif.