Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard found guilty of 1990s sexual assault in Montreal, adding to 11-year sentence
The 84-year-old former fashion executive, already serving 11 years for Toronto assaults, chose not to contest evidence from a 1997–1998 incident in his Montreal penthouse.
Guilty verdict in Montreal
On Monday, July 13, 2026, Peter Nygard, 84, was found guilty of sexual assault and forcible confinement by a Quebec judge in Montreal. He appeared via video link from the Ontario prison where he is serving an 11-year sentence for sexually assaulting four women in Toronto. Nygard chose not to contest the prosecution's summary, abruptly ending a scheduled 10-day judge-alone trial. Quebec prosecutors had charged him in 2022 with one count each of sexual assault and forcible confinement.
Mr. Nygard's change of heart was quite sudden.
Crown prosecutor Laflamme added that the complainant had been prepared to testify. Defence lawyer Gerri Wiebe later said the decision not to contest was influenced by his frail health and the looming US extradition. The complainant's identity remains protected by a publication ban.
The 1997–1998 attack
Court documents detail that Nygard met the victim at a bar when she was 18 and aspired to be a model. He arranged a lunch to discuss her career, then told her he had left his keys behind and brought her to his Montreal penthouse. Once inside, he locked her in the bedroom and sexually assaulted her. The assault took place between November 1997 and November 1998. He later promised her a life of luxury in the Bahamas on the condition she would have sex with him and other women.
Judge Nathalie Fafard accepted Nygard's 2023 Toronto conviction as similar-fact evidence, noting the parallels in how he targeted young women and exploited his status as a fashion mogul.
A growing legal reckoning
Nygard, who immigrated to Canada from Finland as a child, founded Nygard International, one of the largest women's clothing manufacturers in Canada. He hosted celebrity-filled parties at his Bahamas estate before his business empire crumbled under the weight of sexual assault allegations. He is already serving an 11-year sentence handed down in September 2024 for the assault of four women in Toronto between the late 1980s and 2005. A Toronto jury convicted him in 2023, and an Ontario appeal court dismissed his challenge earlier this year.
In October 2025, further historical charges in Manitoba were stayed after a judge ruled that police had failed to retain older records, violating Nygard's right to a fair trial.
- Nygard sexually assaults and confines an 18-year-old woman in his Montreal penthouse.
- Steps down as chairman; Nygard International files for bankruptcy after FBI raid.
- Quebec prosecutors charge Nygard with sexual assault and forcible confinement.
- Toronto jury convicts him of sexually assaulting four women.
- Sentenced to 11 years in prison in the Toronto case.
- Manitoba charges stayed due to procedural issues.
- Quebec judge finds him guilty; Nygard does not contest evidence.
Extradition to the United States looms
With his Canadian proceedings largely resolved, Nygard faces extradition to New York, where he is charged with nine counts including racketeering and sex trafficking. US prosecutors describe a "decades-long pattern of criminal conduct" involving at least a dozen victims between 1990 and 2020. Nygard stepped down as chairman of Nygard International in 2020, shortly before the company filed for bankruptcy after the FBI raided its New York headquarters.
He is in frail health and transferring him now could endanger his life.
Wiebe said Nygard will ask the Canadian justice minister to halt extradition because of his age and precarious health. A sentencing date for the Quebec conviction has not yet been set.
