Peter Nygard to appear in bail court via video link on slew of U.S. charges
Fashion mogul, 79, was indicted by grand jury on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy
Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard is scheduled to appear in a Winnipeg courtroom Wednesday morning via video link, to apply for bail on charges related to the alleged sexual assault of dozens of women and girls.
Nygard, 79, was arrested at a million-dollar home in Winnipeg's Royalwood neighbourhood Dec. 14, 2020, at the request of the United States government under an extradition treaty. He remains in custody.
In a 24-page federal grand jury indictment filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District Court of New York in November, American authorities alleged Nygard forcibly sexually assaulted, drugged, and/or coerced dozens of victims in the U.S., Canada and the Bahamas, as well as other locations.
A dishevelled-looking Nygard made his first court appearance in Winnipeg on Dec. 15. At the time, his lawyer Jay Prober said he wasn't sure if his client planned to fight extradition to the U.S..
The Attorney General of Canada is representing the U.S. in the extradition case. In December the RCMP filed an affidavit in Manitoba's Court of Queen's Bench requesting authorization to arrest Nygard on the U.S. government's behalf.
In the affidavit, the Mounties said Nygard was a danger to the community, both in Canada and the U.S., and that police were concerned he would flee if he wasn't arrested.
"I believe that Nygard has demonstrated a pattern of non-attendance in court, and disregard for court orders, that indicate the likelihood of continued non-attendance or flight," said Sgt. Stefane Nicolas of the RCMP's Federal Serious and Organized Crime Unit in the affidavit.
Nicolas said U.S. authorities have been conducting a long-term investigation into Nygard and co-conspirators, "establishing a decades-long pattern of criminal activity" that has affected "hundreds of victims."
The Mounties also alleged that women have been victimized at properties in Winnipeg, Falcon Lake, Man., and Toronto, with the help of corporate employees.
The Nicolas affidavit said since about 1995, "Nygard and multiple co-conspirators have used force, fraud, and coercion to recruit and entice female victims, both adults and girls ages 14 to 17, to engage in paid sex with Nygard , and on occasion, with Nygard's business and personal associates."
Nygard is also alleged to have used "the ruse of modelling and other fashion industry jobs or other career advancement in order to lure victims into Nygard's orbit and to keep them there," according to the grand jury Indictment.
"Peter Nygard, the defendant, and others known and unknown, frequently targeted women and minor-aged girls who came from disadvantaged economic backgrounds and/or who had a history of abuse," said the indictment.
American authorities also said Nygard maintained control over his victims through threats and other coercive means including constant surveillance and physical isolation.
A total of 57 women have joined a class-action lawsuit in New York accusing Nygard of rape, sexual assault and human trafficking. In some cases the allegations go back as far as 1977. The lawsuit also names a number of upper-level Nygard company executives, officers and directors who are accused of enabling the sex assaults.
In August the case was put on hold to allow the FBI to continue their criminal investigation into Nygard.
The FBI is urging anyone who believes they are a victim of the sexual abuse perpetrated by Nygard to contact them at 1-800-CALLFBI (1-800-225-5324).
Nygard has maintained his innocence and has denied all the allegations. None of them have been proven in court.
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