Judge orders seizure of homes belonging to Montreal billionaire Robert Miller

A Quebec Superior Court judge has ordered the seizure of two Montreal-area residences belonging to billionaire Robert Miller, at the request of four women who have filed civil lawsuits alleging he sexually abused them as minors.

Justice Serge Gaudet on Friday authorized the request for a seizure before judgment of the two properties in Westmount, saying the plaintiffs have reason to fear that the 81-year-old founder of Future Electronics may try to hide assets.

Gaudet said it was "troubling" to learn that the billionaire didn't have a single bank account in his name and that he listed assets under other people's names.

The four women are each seeking millions of dollars from Miller, alleging they were recruited as high school students to have sex with him in exchange for money and gifts as part of what they say was a network to sexually abuse girls and young women.

Miller was arrested in May on 21 sex-related counts involving 10 complainants, many of them minors at the time of the alleged offences, and is also facing a separate proposed class-action lawsuit alleging he gave dozens of minors money and gifts in exchange for sex between 1996 and 2006.

Miller has denied the allegations, none of which have been proven in court.