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Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard was charged in the United States with sex trafficking, racketeering, and other crimes involving dozens of women and underage girls, in a case spanning three countries and nearly three decades. The 79-year-old was arrested by Canadian police and extradited to the US to face trial. Federal prosecutors say Nygard, who owns a namesake clothing company and is among Canada’s wealthiest people, recruited and maintained victims for sex in the US, Canada, and The Bahamas since 1995, and that some victims were drugged. He allegedly targeted vulnerable women from disadvantaged backgrounds, taking them to company-funded “pamper parties” with food and spa services and to swingers clubs, then intimidated them to have sex with him or other men. He used threats of arrest, reputational harm, and lawsuits to silence potential accusers, according to the indictment.
The lawsuit alleges that when Nygard became aware of the investigation into his sex-trafficking activities, he resorted to violence, intimidation, bribery, and payoffs to silence victims and continue the scheme. It also claims Nygard kept a database of potential victims maintained by the Nygard Companies Corporation IT Department on a corporate server, mostly in the United States, containing information on over 2,500 underage girls and women by the mid-2000s. The case notes the death of Nygard’s head of IT, Dane Clifford, shortly after The New York Times began investigating the story, at age 44. The accusations surrounding Nygard and his “Pamper Party Island” have drawn comparisons to allegations against Jeffrey Epstein, prompting questions about similar networks.
Separately, a class action suit filed in Manhattan includes 57 unnamed women accusing Nygard of sexual misconduct.
In Toronto, a sentencing hearing began for Nygard. He was found guilty last fall of four counts of sexual assault. Victims testified about lasting harm, including panic attacks, ruined self-esteem, and thoughts of suicide; testifying in court was described as horrendous. The Crown asked the judge to sentence Nygard to fifteen years in jail, arguing that given his age (83), declining health, and ongoing proceedings in Manitoba, Quebec, and the US, there is little chance he will reoffend or be rehabilitated.