Ex-fashion mogul Peter Nygard has been sentenced to more than a decade in prison over multiple sexual assaults.
It comes after the 83-year-old sexual predator was found guilty last November of four counts of sexual assault of five women in his Toronto, Canada, office.
Nygard – who is Finnish-Canadian – is accused of using his wealth and power to commit his crimes against women in a private bedroom suite on the top floor of the building.
But he will serve under seven years in prison because of credit for the time he has already spent in custody following his arrest in 2020 at the request of the US authorities.
Nygard sat in the courtroom wearing a black Canada Goose hiding under a hood as the Toronto Superior Court Justice Robert Goldstein described him as a ‘sexual predator,’ the CBC reports.
The judge did not mince his words as he described Nygard as a ‘Canadian story gone very wrong.’
Nygard moved to Canada with his parents from Helsinki, Finland, as a child in 1952.
At court, the judge asked Nygard if he had anything to say, prompting him to reply ‘no sir.’
His lawyers said he would appeal the conviction and sentence, the outlet reports.
Nygard was acquitted of a fifth count of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement.
The court heard harrowing testimonies from the women during a six-week trial. Four of the women said they were in their 20s when the attacks happened between the 1980s and 2005.
One victim said she was 16 at the time of the assault.
Justice Goldstein said if he punished Nygard more leniently because of his age, it would validate a sense of immunity by men who committed these crimes.
He also said it would send the message that rich and powerful men targeting vulnerable people can ‘escape culpability if you hold off the day of judgement long enough.’
Nygard was arrested in late 2020 following a request from the US where he is accused of using his business to lure women and girls to sexually gratify himself and his associates, the Guardian reports.
A year later, Toronto police charged him. He also faces charges of sexual assault and forcible confinement in Manitoba and Quebec, and he is fighting extradition to the US where he would face federal charges.
Nygard’s son Kai Bickle, who has been an informant in the investigation against his dad since 2019, commented on his father’s sentencing.
Mr Bickle told MTV Uutiset that he experienced directly being silenced.
He said: ‘It is clear that Nygard used money to hire people to silence the accusers and hide his crimes for decades.’
Prince Andrew was put under the spotlight following the investigation into Nygard. The businessman once hosted Prince Andrew in the Bahamas.
Last year, the Duke of York faced renewed calls to meet FBI investigators after Nygard was convicted over the four sexual assaults, MailOnline reported.
Prince Andrew visited the businessman at his Bahama compound in 2000 – reportedly shortly after Nygard had reached out-of-court settlements with three employees who had accused him of sexual harassment.
There is no suggestion that Prince Andrew has been involved with any impropriety.
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