‘I told him “no” twice’: 3rd complainant testifies at Peter Nygard trial

Remembering the night in September 1996 when she says she woke up in Peter Nygard’s bed naked, with him on top of her, the third complainant to take the stand at the former fashion mogul’s sexual assault trial said she was very scared.

The woman, now 51, whose identity is covered by a court-ordered publication ban, said she met Nygard about six months earlier as she was flying between Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas, en route to Toronto with her boss, who was sitting in business class. The woman said she worked as a professional party hostess and had been in the Turks and Caicos for a photoshoot.

Nygard walked into economy class, where the woman, then 24, was seated. He waved at her “like a little kid,” she told the jury. She testified Nygard spoke with two women sitting behind her. They were with Nygard. She had no idea who he was.

She later learned that after Nygard walked back to first class, he spoke to her boss. Her boss informed her they would be staying over a couple of nights in the Bahamas. She didn’t question him and later learned they had been invited to a party at Nygard’s sprawling estate, known as Nygard Cay.

That night, the complainant said she saw the two women from the plane and a woman who was like a host. She later learned that woman was Nygard’s girlfriend from New York.

She testified she didn’t really speak to Nygard that night.

“He was just talking about himself a lot. He wasn’t groomed well; knots in his hair. It was rough.”

She also remembered they were shown videos about his fashion business. She said she later returned to Toronto with her boss and didn’t exchange contact information with anyone she met at the dinner.

Weeks later, the woman said Nygard called her. She was shocked because she didn’t know how he got her number.

“He wanted me to come work for him. I told him I was a professional celebrity hostess. I told him I could work for him but he had to pay.”

She said he kept calling and calling and one day he asked her to work a fashion show at Toronto’s Massey Hall. He told her to wear all black and she did. She told him it was $500 for the night and he agreed.

But when she arrived, she testified, “I just had to stand beside him all night. That’s not work.”

She said weeks later, he called her again, saying he was going to be in Toronto and was having a party at his office. Nygard told her she would make drinks, order food and clean up a little bit. She agreed but found it unusual that it was in an office building and that the party was starting at midnight. She says Nygard told her the woman from New York would be there.

She arrived at Nygard’s building at 1 Niagara St., wearing a purple velvet catsuit with some sparkle on it that she’d made herself. She told the jury that a receptionist asked her to sign a piece of paper. She refused. The receptionist called Nygard and he said she didn’t have to sign in.

“It was weird. I’ve never been asked to sign a piece of paper before … going to work.”

The complainant testified there were about 20 people at the party. Shortly after arriving, she said she and half the guests followed Nygard up to his top-floor office. She was carrying Chinese food that she had just ordered for the guests.

“Then Peter pushed a glass wall and it opened into a bedroom. It was like a wall. It was like magic. It just opened,” she said, adding the door had no handle or frame.

She described the massive bed as being bigger than a “California King” with fur blankets. She said three TVs were on — two were showing pornography; one had CNN on it.

She said she put the Chinese food in the kitchenette in the back of the bedroom and began pouring drinks. Then she turned around to see people undressed, she testified.

“I started panicking a little. I made a drink for myself. I made a cranberry and soda,” explaining she hoped a drink would make her feel more comfortable.

She said as she began to take a couple of sips on a second drink, she blacked out. When she woke up, Nygard was on top of her and she was naked on the bed, she told court.

“He had pinned me down by my wrists and my legs were spread open. Everyone else was in a circle watching.”

The woman testified she said “no,” at which point Nygard let go of one wrist and tried to re-adjust himself. She said he was wearing nothing, but didn’t remember seeing him undress.

Nobody said anything, she testified. She said Nygard grabbed her wrist again and she told him “no” again.

“I told him ‘no’ twice then I started saying ‘stop’ because no wasn’t working.”

She said she believed he was on top of her for four to five minutes before he eventually got off. She testified she went to the bathroom and tried to gather herself and when she came out, Nygard was having sex with other people.

She told the court she grabbed her catsuit, which was next to the bed, put it on, and tried to look for the door but couldn’t find it.

“I knew I came from the corner but there was no door handle. I didn’t know how to get in or out. I wanted to leave.”

Eventually, she testified, another couple went to leave and she slipped out the door behind them.

She cried as she described how the incident made her feel devalued and abused.

“I didn’t know someone would hire me and then just do that to me.”

She said she never told anyone what Nygard did to her because he’s wealthy and powerful and she thought no one would believe her.

Two or three days later, she testified the receptionist called her and said Nygard had something for her. She drove to his office and when she arrived, the receptionist told her to pull to the side of the building. She said a gentleman came out with 20 garment bags.

When she got home, she opened the bags to find clothing from Nygard’s line. She kept two jackets and gave the rest away, describing them as “old people clothes.”

A couple of months later, she said he called her and invited her to Marina del Ray and the Bahamas, saying she could work for him. She agreed, saying, “He promised I would never be touched again under any circumstances.”

She said she worked for him for a week at New Year’s 1997 and then three times a year in the Bahamas, from 1997-2001, saying he would pay for her flights and she would stay in his compound.

The woman said she came forward to police after joining a U.S. class-action lawsuit.

During cross-examination, defence lawyer Brian Greenspan asked the woman if she was aware there was no allegation in the class-action suit against Nygard involving her in Toronto.

Greenspan also asked her if she remembered being interviewed by the CBC for a podcast about Nygard. He suggested that she mentioned nothing in that interview about Nygard committing an assault on her.

The complainant responded, “I didn’t want it to be known, what happened in Toronto. I really didn’t feel like it was a sexual assault. He didn’t get … inside of me. He didn’t slap me around. I didn’t want to tell anyone.”

Greenspan also asked her about how she’d told police in her statement about witnessing an orgy at Nygard’s estate in the Bahamas, the night she met him on the plane in March 1996. She testified there were more than 25 people there, engaging in various forms of sexual activity. She told Greenspan she waited for her boss and wanted to leave.

Going back to the night at Nygard’s office, Greenspan suggested to the complainant that she knew what was going to happen when people started taking off their clothes, given what she’d seen in the Bahamas. She replied, “I was not hired to get jumped on. Absolutely not, I did not go there for an orgy.”

Greenspan also asked the woman why she never told police that Nygard had told her he’d never touch her again, after the alleged assault.

“Did you say anything about any undertaking made by Mr. Nygard in your 149-page transcript you gave to police?”

The woman replied, “I was never asked.”

Nygard, 82, is charged with five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement. He has pleaded not guilty. The trial continues.