The Supreme Court of Canada refuses to hear the appeal of Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard, who in the United States faces charges of human trafficking for sexual purposes and extortion, and who wanted to be released on bail for further extradition proceedings.
Peter Nygard earlier this year asked the country’s highest court for permission to challenge the Manitoba courts’ ruling, which denied him bail during extradition proceedings. His lawyers have argued for inconsistencies in the way courts decide on incarceration in these extradition cases. “You are less likely to get bail if you are charged in a foreign state than if you are charged in Canada,” argued his lawyer, Brian Greenspan.
Peter Nygard was arrested in Winnipeg last December under the Extradition Act. He faces nine charges in New York. US authorities accuse the Canadian of using his influence in the fashion industry to sexually attract women and girls, with the promise of a modeling job and other financial benefits.
Mr. Greenspan pleaded in court that his client denied all the allegations and that he posed no risk if he were to be released on bail during extradition proceedings.
He was first refused bail last February. The trial judge then feared that Mr. Nygard would contact witnesses if he was released.
His lawyers, however, presented the court with a bail plan that included monitoring all emails and text messages from Mr. Nygard, a home security guard and 24-hour video surveillance. side, argued that Mr. Nygard had the financial means and the personnel required to obstruct justice.
He appealed the first instance decision and was again denied his release in March. Judge Jennifer Pfuetzner of the Manitoba Court of Appeal concluded that Mr. Nygard’s detention was necessary to maintain public confidence in the justice system, given the enormity of the allegations. She said the allegations “painted a picture of criminal conduct that was planned, funded and executed on a staggering scale.”
Mr. Nygard’s extradition hearing is scheduled to take place in November. The US extradition request details the accounts of seven alleged victims who are expected to testify at the criminal trial in New York. These women allege that their livelihoods and movements have become dependent on having sex with Mr. Nygard. They say they have been constrained by financial means or by physical force. Mr. Greenspan said his client was eager to respond to these allegations at trial.
Mr. Nygard is also the subject of a class action lawsuit in the United States involving 57 women, who present similar allegations.
80-year-old Peter Nygard founded a small fashion company in Winnipeg in 1967, which grew into a brand sold in stores around the world. The Canadian mogul resigned as the company’s president when the US Federal Police (FBI) and New York City Police raided his offices in February 2020.
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