Canadian fashion tycoon Nygard sentenced to 11 years in prison for sexual assault

On September 9 local time, former Canadian "fashion tycoon" Peter Nygard, 83, was sentenced to 11 years in prison by a court in Toronto after being found guilty of four counts of sexual assault.

Nygard was previously accused of assaulting five women in the private bedroom suite of his downtown Toronto office between the late 1980s and 2005. In November last year, the court jury found him guilty on four counts of sexual assault, while one count of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement were not guilty. Considering the time already spent in custody, Nygard will still serve nearly seven years in prison, and he will be eligible to apply for parole in a little over two years.

The court has a publication ban on the identities of the victims in the case to protect their privacy. Nygard's lawyer said he will appeal the conviction and sentence.

It is worth mentioning that Nygard also faces a series of charges in Quebec Province and Manitoba Province in Canada as well as in New York, the United States. In New York, he faces nine charges including conspiracy to commit extortion, transporting minors for the purpose of prostitution, and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion. He was arrested by law enforcement in Winnipeg in December 2020 in accordance with Canada's "Extradition Act." In May this year, the Manitoba Court of Appeal rejected Nygard's application for a judicial review of the extradition order.

Nygard, who was born in Finland, immigrated to Canada with his parents when he was young. In 1967, he founded his fashion company in Winnipeg, a central Canadian city. The company produces women's clothing of multiple brands. In 2020, his company was accused of being involved in a sex trafficking case. As a result, Nygard stepped down as chairman. The company then filed for bankruptcy and entered bankruptcy administration procedures. Nygard's sexual assault scandal has aroused widespread concern and condemnation from society. This sentence also shows the seriousness of the law towards sexual assault crimes.