In the days following his arrest for the alleged murder of Tim Bosma, Dellen Millard transferred ownership of three residential properties to his mother for $1, the Star has learned.

The conspicuously timed real estate dump raises concerns about Millard’s intentions, according to eight legal experts specializing in real estate, tax and estates, who reviewed the documents at the request of the Star.

Those experts agree the timing of the transfers is “highly unusual” and poses serious legal questions.

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Protecting his assets from future lawsuits was among the potential motivations cited by several of the lawyers interviewed. A search of Millard’s name on the provincial property database no longer reveals his connection to any of the three addresses.

It’s an issue that arose in the case of convicted killer Russell Williams, who was accused in court of fraudulently transferring his Ottawa home to his wife to protect the asset from legal liability.

Experts interviewed by the Star say Millard’s real estate transfers could face similar scrutiny for contravening provincial laws that forbid such transactions.

“The timing is beyond smelly. It doesn’t make sense to me,” said Andrew Fortis, real estate lawyer with Hummingbird Lawyers. “It raises a lot of red flags.”

Millard’s lawyer, Deepak Paradkar, dismissed the allegations.

“I don’t think there’s anything unusual about a family member taking over assets while you’re in jail,” he said in an interview. “I don’t believe there’s anything untoward.”

On the day after his May 10 arrest, Millard, 27, hastily signed over power of attorney to his mother, Madeleine Burns, from the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre, public records obtained by the Star show.

Millard signed the May 11 document alongside Paradkar.

On the same day, police announced the discovery of Tim Bosma’s 2007 Dodge Ram pickup truck parked inside a trailer belonging to Millard on the driveway of Burns’s Kleinburg home.

Police have cleared Burns of any involvement in Bosma’s disappearance and murder. Millard is one of two suspects charged with first-degree murder.

Six days after signing over power of attorney, on May 17, three of Millard’s properties were transferred into his mother’s name: a condo in the Distillery District; a condo in Vaughan; and a bungalow in Etobicoke, all for a nominal $1 consideration.

May was a very busy month for Millard.

His flurry of real estate moves began with a posh condo purchase at 70 Distillery Lane.

On May 7 — the day after Bosma went missing — Millard bought the Distillery District condo for $627,524, real estate records show. Three days later, he was arrested in connection with Bosma’s disappearance.

On May 15 — five days later — he appeared in court to be charged with Bosma’s murder.

Two days after that, while he was in solitary confinement, ownership of Millard’s condo was transferred to his mother’s name.

That same day, he transferred to her a condo at 281 Woodbridge Ave. that he’d bought in 2011 for $392,049, and a third property, the Maple Gate Court home where he grew up.

According to transfer documents, Burns took title and now has ownership of those three properties, which were placed in trust with Burns as the appointed trustee. It’s not known whether Millard maintained beneficial ownership, as trust documents are not public.

The Star is aware of two other properties owned by Millard that remain in his name: a six-unit residential property on Riverside Rd. and the Ayr farm where Bosma’s badly burned body was found.

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Legal experts agree the documents show a series of sophisticated –— and curious — transactions for which there is a case to be made against Millard under the provincial Fraudulent Conveyances Act.

The act clearly states the transfer of property to “defeat, hinder, delay or defraud creditors or others of their just and lawful actions” — including suits or damages — is void if not done in “good faith” or with knowledge of such action against them.

A judge would ultimately rule on whether the transfers are null after hearing arguments on why they were made.

David Ullman, a partner at Minden Gross who specializes in issues involving creditors — including finding hidden assets — says Millard could have simply given his mother power of attorney to manage his affairs or added her to the property title.

“I think it’s a little strange that it’s being done six days after the power of attorney was appointed,” Ullman said. “My instinct as someone who deals with people who are trying to hide assets from their creditors is that this could be done for that purpose.”

Toronto lawyer Barry Fish called the property transfers “highly unusual.”

“The purpose of doing this is opaque to me,” he said. “[Millard] has not put these three properties out of reach of his creditors. He has only placed an obstacle in their path, which a plaintiff lawyer can circumvent.”

The lawyers the Star spoke to said it is normal for someone who has been arrested to sign over power of attorney to deal with paper-signing. What becomes suspect, they said, is the timing and intention of the transfers.

“The question is, could his lawyers argue that he was already going to do this and this was done in good faith . . . or was it done to avoid paying somebody in the future?” said Toronto real estate lawyer David Feld.

Paradkar said arrangements were made to facilitate day-to-day affairs while Millard is in jail awaiting trial. He said Millard is “not concerned about lawsuits.”

“He has the right to conduct his affairs in such a manner as he sees fit,” Paradkar wrote in an email. “Any suggestion of fraudulent conveyances are untrue and simply irresponsible speculation.”

John David Brunt, a real estate and commercial lawyer with Blaney McMurtry, handled the transfers, according to public documents. Brunt said in an email that he could not comment on the transfers due to client-solicitor privilege.

The Star received no response to requests for an interview with Burns and Millard about the transfers.

Bosma’s family currently has no civil actions filed against Millard, who plans to plead not-guilty to criminal charges, Paradkar has said.

Bosma’s family have the option to file a wrongful death suit against those accused of his murder — something that is typically done after a criminal conviction, once the evidence has been heard in open court.

Bosma’s widow, Sharlene, declined comment when reached by the Star.

Allegations before the courts that former CFB Trenton commander Russell Williams tried to surreptitiously protect his assets in the months after his arrest were triggered when he transferred his house solely into his wife’s name.

Both Williams and his estranged wife, Mary Elizabeth Harriman, denied those allegations in defence statements, arguing the transfer was made to protect Harriman’s financial security. The lawsuit is ongoing.

In prison, Millard has been placed in isolation “for his own protection,” his lawyer Paradkar said.

“It’s very difficult,” Paradkar said. “He’s got nothing to do. He’s an affable, outgoing guy, very low-key, not a guy who would project as having money. You just wouldn’t know.”

He said Millard never had any interest in the family business, spending his time instead in chef school and other interests.

“The family has been destroyed over this.”

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