Karla Homolka's former boss is paying the price for his 15 minutes of fame.

Earlier this week, Richer Lapointe announced that Homolka had worked at his hardware store and that he was planning to move to her hometown, St. Catharines, Ont.

On Friday, however, Rona Inc. said it was closing down Lapointe's store in a Montreal suburb and added he wouldn't be relocating to a Rona store in St. Catharines.

"We're certainly trying to prevent getting dragged into this," Daniel Larouche told The Globe and Mail.

The home improvement giant doesn't want its business to be hurt by the negative publicity surrounding Homolka and the store, he said.

Lapointe, 38, was charged last week with sexual assault and assault, and is under a court order not to leave Quebec.

Lapointe ran the Rona outlet in Longueuil, Que., and hired Homolka as an apprentice clerk.

She quit last week, but while she was working there, Lapointe secretly taped conversations with her.

He claims the tapes prove she has broken the conditions of her recent release from prison.

He said Homolka talks about her association with convicts and about the deal she made with the Crown when it was convicting her and ex-husband, Paul Bernardo, who remains in jail.  

According to Lapointe, Homolka also discusses her role in the rape of a woman known as Jane Doe, a crime for which neither Homolka nor Bernardo were ever charged.

Police are examining the tapes.

Homolka left prison in early July after serving a 12-year sentence for the sex killings of two Ontario schoolgirls.

Lapointe had been a shareholder in the store but recently sold his shares to his parents.