Cars torched in Montreal lawyer's driveway

Montreal police are investigating after two carscaught fire in the driveway of a lawyer facing financial fraud allegations.

The incident happened at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday on Fallbrook Street in Hampstead, a municipality west of downtown Montreal. Police said at leastone of the cars was deliberately targeted, while the second vehicle may have caught fire because of flames coming from the first.

"It sounded like somebody slamming a door into my house,"said Isaac Sachs, who lives a few houses away."I open the door...and I see...one car is completely on fire and the one next to itisn't even worth [salvaging]."

Thetwo vehicles werein the driveway of lawyerDany Perras, although police would not confirm the cars belonged to him.

Perrasrecently quit the Quebec Bar Association amid financial fraud allegations. Hehas been served with two seizure orders in connection with an alleged disappearance of funds connected to a multimillion-dollar financial scheme.

Stein & Stein, a Montreal law firm acting on the behalf ofpurported investors, hasfiled a bankruptcy petition against Perras, alleging misappropriation of millions of dollars from his trust account.

The Quebec Bar Association is investigating Perras and has taken control of the lawyer's trust accounts.

Police said they are treating Sunday's incident as criminal.

Montreal police spokesperson Anie Lemieux said police are checking to see if the owners of the cars have received any threats recently.

"Investigators will meet with the owners to try to understand why these vehicles were on fire, and see if they were set on fire or if there's some kind of problem whatsoever, but it does look like arson so far," said Lemieux.

Lemieux said the vehicles will be analyzed to determine how they were set on fire.