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TORONTO — The estranged husband of a McCain heiress says he’s broke, but banking and credit card records presented in court show he’s been depositing more money in his accounts than financial statements say he earns, while spending an average of more than $20,000 per month on credit card bills.

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Jeff Melanson racked up more than $520,000 in credit card expenses since 2015, the same year he resigned as the CEO of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. More than $50,000 of his credit card expenses in 2016 went to travel, court heard, after spending six months heading across Canada, the U.S., and Mexico.

Melanson was in a Toronto court Thursday as his lawyers attempted to convince a judge that he needed help paying his legal bills and that McCain Foods heiress Eleanor McCain should help pay them. If Melanson is not awarded $125,000, he’ll be priced out of a toxic court battle against McCain, who is seeking an annulment after a nine-month marriage, lawyer Harold Niman said.

The couple sat on opposite sides of a small Toronto courtroom and were separated by two protruding walls as Niman explained their financial history.

McCain had a net worth of $365 million in 2014 when she signed a marriage contract granting Melanson $5-million in the event of a divorce. Having her either loan or advance the interim costs would level the playing field, Niman said. Melanson is unemployed, his debts double his assets and he’s racked up more than $200,000 in legal bills thus far.