Canadian fashion entrepreneur peter nygard, 82, has been convicted of sexually assaulting multiple women.
According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 12th local time, a jury in Ontario, Canada, found Peter Nigard (82) guilty of four sexual assault charges.
One charge of sexual assault and one charge of imprisonment have been acquitted. The court is due to make a final decision this month.
The victims testified in the trial that Nygard lured him to his home in the Toronto headquarters building and committed sexual assault, citing reasons such as giving him a tour of the building.
The crime took place from the 1980s to 2005, and some of the victims were minors who were only 16 years old at the time of the incident.
Nigard reportedly denied the allegation of sexual assault, saying he did not even remember meeting the other four people except one who was a company employee at the trial.
Nygard is expected to be transferred to New York after the Canadian criminal trial process, where he will be tried on nine charges, including human trafficking and blackmail.
According to New York prosecutors, Nygard and his business colleagues are accused of luring women to a Bahamian mansion with a promise to debut as models, forcing them to drink drugs and commit sexual violence.
Nygard was arrested in Canada in December 2020 and has been in prison following an extradition claim by New York prosecutors.
Peter Nygard is from Finland, and founded a sportswear company named after him in Canada more than 50 years ago, and grew it into a large distributor with 170 stores in North America alone.
The court’s final sentence is due this month.
EJ SONG
US ASIA JOURNAL
