Peter Nygard Arrested On Sex Trafficking Charges, Has Links To Prince Andrew

Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard on Tuesday was charged with a nine-count grand jury indictment, which includes allegations of sex trafficking and racketeeing, after federal authorities said he used his company to prey upon young women and girls.

Federal prosecutors in New York City said the Nygard alleged crimes date back to 1995 and continued until recently this year.

"Mr. Nygard vehemently denies the allegations and expects to be vindicated in court," his defense lawyer, Jay Prober, told NBC News.

Nygard was arrested by Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Winnipeg on Monday, officials said. The 79-year-old Finnish-Canadian fashion executive reportedly used Nygard International’s influence to recruit dozens of women and teenagers, some of whom had histories of abuse. Nygard as well as his friends and colleagues drugged and sexually assaulted the victims in his home in the Bahamas, where he once hosted Prince Andrew and his family.

The Duke of York had stepped down from his royal duties in November 2019 after investigators found a connection between him and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In the documentary “Surviving Jeffrey Epstein,” some survivors claimed they were forced to have sex with the duke.

“Prince Andrew is not the prince from the fairy-tale stories you read,” Virginia Giuffre, one of the victims, said in the documentary. “Andrew deserves to be outed. He deserves to be held accountable. He participated in a sex trafficking operation with one of the most prolific sex trafficking operators in the world in modern time.”

However, investigators found no evidence that suggested Prince Andrew knew about Nygard’s activities. The duke was not mentioned in the lawsuit against Nygard.

Nygard’s bail hearing was initially scheduled for Jan. 31, but Prober is planning to request that the hearing be moved to as early as next week. Nygard is currently in custody.

Stories of sexual assault came to light after Louis Bacon — one of Nygard's neighbors in the Bahamas — filed a lawsuit in February. He accused the fashion mogul of sexually assaulting minors in his home after luring them in with modeling opportunities and luxury items.

“He preys on poor people’s little girls, Natasha Taylor, an employee who worked at Nygard’s Bahamian home, told The New York Times.

Two women also sued Nygard for sexual battery in January. Maridel Carbuccia, a former employee, said the fashion mogul drugged and raped her at his Los Angeles home in 2016. She was fired two years after the alleged incidents.