BOSTON -- Attorney General Tom Reilly filed a lawsuit Friday against Boston Baby stores and a Canton man who owns the company after the baby furniture retailer abruptly shut its doors in late March.

Reilly's consumer protection lawsuit alleges that Boston Baby collected more than $400,000 in deposits from hundreds of expectant parents in the days and weeks before shuttering the business, but failed to deliver furniture as promised or even order the furniture consumers purchased.

The lawsuit also alleges that Boston Bay failed to return customer deposits or provide notice or customer service, awaiting delivery of the furniture they purchased.

"Awaiting the birth of a baby should be one of the most joyous times in a parent's life," Reilly said. "Instead, these expectant parents have been left to worry about last-minute preparations for their newborns. It is bad enough that this business shut down, but the company made it much worse for customers by providing no notice or customer service, and failing to refund deposits so that these parents can get their furniture elsewhere."

The lawsuit seeks restitution for consumers as well as a permanent injunction and civil penalties under the Consumer Protection Act.

Attorneys from Reilly's office, in an effort to preserve Boston Baby's assets for reimbursement to hundreds of consumer victims, went into court on an emergency basis Friday to ask the Superior Court to freeze the assets of Boston Baby and its owner Harvey Slobodkin. Reilly's office is also asking for a lien on Slobodkin's residence in Canton.

Boston Baby closed its retail stores in Newton, Danvers and Braintree on or about March 24. Since then, hundreds of consumers have lodged complaints with Reilly's office, claiming they paid money to Boston Baby in the weeks and days leading up to March 24, either as deposits for furniture to be delivered in 4 to 12 weeks, or payments in full.

The consumer payments, typically for baby furniture and related goods, ranged from $150 to $4,900. On average, consumers paid nearly $1,100 to Boston Baby.

Based on the investigation to date, Reilly's office estimates that approximately 420 consumers paid $430,000, for furniture Boston Baby has not delivered and, in some cases, did not even order, despite its assurances to consumers. Many customers had scheduled delivery dates in March or April, only to learn that the business had closed down.

To make matters worse, the complaint alleges, Boston Baby provided no notice to its customers, and customers could not contact the store after they learned of the closing.

"I'm very concerned about the circumstances surrounding the abrupt closing of this business," Reilly said. "This lawsuit will ensure that there's a plan in place to return customers deposits immediately."

Before its abrupt closure, Boston Baby had operated for more than a decade in Massachusetts. Slobodkin is the sole owner of the several corporations comprising the Boston Baby business operations.