MONTREAL - A new book released today says Michael Jackson once considered moving to Montreal.
In "Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson," author Ian Halperin says the pop icon vowed to leave the United States after polls indicated most people thought he was guilty of child abuse charges even though he had been acquitted in 2005.
The book says Jackson's first choice was Britain, followed by Germany and then Montreal.
Montreal was in the running because surveys suggested most Quebecers believed Jackson was innocent.
The singer reportedly looked at properties in the upscale Westmount and Outremont districts.
The book says Jackson particularly liked a swanky mansion once owned by the Bronfman family, although it wasn't for sale.
Halperin also reported a Montreal conversation overheard in the 1980s by a journalist that suggested Jackson was sympathetic to Quebec sovereignty.
