Toronto, Nov. 13 (AP) Peter Nygard, once a veteran of the women’s fashion industry, was found guilty on four counts of sexual assault by a Canadian court on Sunday and acquitted on two other counts.
The court gave this verdict on the fifth day after the hearing that lasted for six weeks.
Nygaard (82) said in reference to the allegations made that he is not guilty in any of these cases. These allegations have been made in connection with incidents that occurred between the 1980s and the mid-2000s.
Five women testified that they were invited to Nygard’s Toronto headquarters under the pretext of a tour and job interview, but four of them were sexually assaulted in a special room (suite) on the top floor.
All five women said they were subjected to sexual activity during their encounters with Nygard, to which they did not consent.
One of the complainants testified that Nygard did not allow her to leave his private room ‘suite’ for a period of time, leading to a charge of forcible confinement.
Nygard denied the allegations made by these women. At the end of the hearing, prosecutors said Nygard was evasive and did not answer questions correctly. These lawyers said that the consistency in the testimony of the five women shows a pattern in Nygard’s behavior.
AP Rajkumar Santosh
Satisfaction
