Toronto trial hears more testimony from Peter Nygard

Former fashion mogul Peter Nygard continued testifying in his own defence today at his sexual assault trial in Toronto.

Nygard, the founder of a now-defunct international women’s clothing company, is accused of using his position in the fashion industry to lure women and girls.

The 82-year-old has pleaded not guilty to five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement in alleged incidents ranging from the 1980s to mid-2000s.

Multiple complainants in the trial have alleged they were taken to Nygard’s Toronto headquarters under pretences ranging from tours to job interviews, with encounters ending in a top-floor bedroom suite where they allege they were sexually assaulted.

Some of the testimony court heard from complainants included allegations of being trapped within the suite.

Nygard told the jury Wednesday that there was no way someone could get locked inside the suite because it had three exits and only one of them required a passcode since it led to his office.

Under questioning today from his lawyer, Brian Greenspan, Nygard has spent more time explaining the layout of his company’s headquarters at 1 Niagara St. in Toronto, describing the building’s interior.

Nygard also described a dresser in his private suite that he said was placed behind a mirrored door and therefore not visible from the bed in the room.

When Greenspan asked him if there were “boxes and boxes” of condoms stored in that dresser, Nygard said no, but added that there were likely “some” condoms in a drawer.

Nygard founded Nygard International in Winnipeg in 1967, and stepped down as chairman of the clothing company in February 2020 before it filed for bankruptcy.