As much as 100 abuse victims of Montreal billionaire Robert Miller, lawyer says

A Quebec judge is hearing arguments this week in a class-action lawsuit application against Montreal billionaire Robert Miller over allegations he paid minors for sex.

The proposed lawsuit includes anyone under the age of 18 who was paid for sex by Miller or who was a victim of sexual exploitation by him or by any other group determined by the court.

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Lawyer Jeff Orenstein told a hearing today that 51 women have come forward to his firm, but he says the actual number of victims could be as high as 100 because many of the women allegedly said they had recruited others to have sex with the billionaire.

Miller, 81, was the subject of a report last February by Radio-Canada and the CBC that said he allegedly gave cash and gifts to minors in exchange for sex between 1994 and 2006.

In the aftermath of the report, Miller stepped down as CEO of Future Electronics and sold the company.

He was arrested in May on 21 criminal charges involving 10 alleged victims, many of them minors.

Miller has denied the allegations in the criminal case and in the class-action lawsuit application, which is before the Quebec Superior Court for authorization.