“Monster”. Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygaard is accused of rape and kidnapping

There was a time when his 22-room property in the Bahamas hosted the likes of Michael Jackson, Robert De Niro, Sylvester Stallone, Oprah Winfrey and even… Prince Andrew in 2000. The businessman enjoys social evenings in the arms of young women, in particular viewing parties Hosted at the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Oscar host describes himself as a “complete self-made man” and claims stem cell injections have allowed him to stand the test of time.

Recipient of the Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (intended to “recognize her for her philanthropic work to raise funds and awareness for cancer research and her outstanding contributions to Canada and the Commonwealth”), awarded by the country’s Governor General, the millionaire; He is also the founder of Nygård International, the largest manufacturer of women’s clothing nationally. As of 2020, its brand has no less than 170 stores in North America and more than 6,000 stores in shopping centers. In fact, Peter Nygaard’s story has made his compatriots dream for a long time. By 2020, an eight-year-old had been arrested in Canada following allegations of rape and assault by more than 50 women.

Doors without handles

Born in Finland and raised in Manitoba, the son of immigrants created his eponymous sportswear label in Winnipeg in the 1960s. The company grew very quickly and made its founder one of the richest people in Canada. These decades of reigning over local fashion, however, are only the tip of the iceberg. His persona of a sultry boss in love with a jet-set would actually hide an entirely different personality, that of a “monster” combined with a sexual predator. The Canadian millionaire, whose trial began in Toronto on Tuesday, September 26, is actually accused of “using his power and position” to sexually assault, rape and kidnap five young women between the ages of 16 and 28. Facts that allegedly happened between 1980 and 2005.

All describe the same modus operandi. According to them, the businessman lured them by offering to conduct a job interview or to visit the head office of his company in Toronto. At the end of each visit, Peter Nygaard allegedly took his alleged victims to a room with a “huge bed” hidden behind his desk and equipped with a bar. A “silent, dark-colored” room, the doors of which had automatic locks operated by a businessman, but no handles. The trap would then be closed on the young women he would kidnap and rape. Since the trial opened, some of those who remain unidentified have given chilling testimony.

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“He is going to rape me.”

So much so that one of them, called to the stand, had to interrupt his story several times. “I just need to breathe,” he told the judge on Thursday, September 28. According to the complainant, Peter Nygaard sexually assaulted her after they attended a Rolling Stones concert together in 1989. in December. The millionaire who was supposed to drive her home allegedly offered her a drink at the brand’s headquarters. He would accept, despite the little phrase that crossed his mind. “He’s going to rape me.” The businessman then allegedly locked her in a room with closed doors before assaulting her. The complainant claims that she tried to escape, but failed.

Another woman who would have such an evening with the tycoon described him as a “monster”. “He was squeezing my legs and he started taking my clothes off,” she said through tears, according to Radio-Canada. That evening, the millionaire allegedly raped her, after which she rushed to the toilet to vomit. “He then knocked on the door to say his condom was still in me, I was disgusted,” she continued, noting that Peter Nygaard had about fifty boxes of condoms in his drawer.

“He took off my skirt and panties”

A third person describes similar facts as reported by prosecutor Ana Serban. “He attacked the woman on the bed, put his whole body on top of her, nailed her to keep her on her back and tried to strip her,” he said. He’s terrified.” At the end of the incident, Peter Nygaard, realizing that he had torn the latter’s clothes, allegedly provided him with a new shirt and skirt. His alleged victim would have escaped.

Another woman describes her meeting with the tycoon as follows. “It was the most tragic thing that ever happened to me.” In her testimony, she says she was invited to a party at the Toronto headquarters by a man with whom she was having an affair. However, he would find himself alone with Peter Nygard, who would pounce on him. “Peter fought with me and took off my skirt and panties,” she explained, claiming the man urged her to “leave.” “I felt like I didn’t really have a choice,” she added, recalling being “scared” and “confused.”

Lots of testing

This is not the first time that the Canadian-Finnish man has become the subject of legal proceedings. While the 1980 rape charge against him was dropped, ten other complainants have since filed suit against the fashion mogul in New York court in February 2020. All claim he raped them at his residence in the Bahamas and accuse: he is about sex trafficking. A collective action joined by 57 other women. Among them, 18 Canadian women. Some accuse the businessman of violence, intimidation, buying the silence of his employees. Facts that the main interested party has always denied.

This legal action, however, marks the beginning of his downfall. A few days after the initiation of this procedure, the FBI and NYPD searched Nygård International’s headquarters in Winnipeg on February 25, 2020. The businessman resigned as chairman before his company filed for bankruptcy. Ten months later, he was arrested and sent to prison to await trial. He, who is the subject of other proceedings, will also be at the center of a 2024 trial in Quebec to be tried on complaints from his alleged Canadian victims before being extradited to the US. But the 82-year-old man, who arrived in court in Toronto, was weak and showed “no emotion” in a wheelchair as he listened to the testimony of his alleged victims.

Legal battles, during which the businessman will have to rely on the support of some of his family members. Married four times and father of seven, Peter Nygaard has seen his three sons turn their backs on him. Two of them accuse him of paying a prostitute to rape them in order to lose their virginity when they were 14 and 15 years old. A third claims to have seen the father inappropriately touching an 8-year-old girl. Now Peter Nygard faces life imprisonment.