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F.B.I. Raids Headquarters of Company Run by Fashion Executive Peter Nygard
By Kim Barker and Catherine Porter
5-6 minutes
U.S.|F.B.I. Raids Headquarters of Company Run by Fashion Executive Peter Nygard
A task force of the F.B.I. and the New York Police Department raided the corporate headquarters as part of a sex-trafficking investigation.
F.B.I. agents raided the Manhattan headquarters of Peter Nygard’s company on Tuesday.Credit...Earl Wilson/The New York Times
- Feb. 25, 2020Updated 2:37 p.m. ET
Federal agents and New York Police detectives raided the Manhattan headquarters of the fashion company run by a Canadian fashion executive on Tuesday morning, seeking evidence in a sex-trafficking investigation, according to two law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.
The executive, Peter Nygard, 78, has been under investigation for at least five months by a joint child-exploitation task force of the F.B.I. and the New York Police Department, an inquiry overseen by the U.S. attorney’s office based in Manhattan. At least four women who have accused Mr. Nygard in a recent lawsuit of sexually assaulting them when they were 14 and 15 in the Bahamas have also met with the task force.
That lawsuit was filed this month. On Sunday, The New York Times detailed how a fight with his wealthy neighbor led to the lawsuit, and also showed
a pattern of complaints about sexual misconduct by Mr. Nygard stretching back 40 years.
Nine women in Canada and California, mostly employees, have sued him or reported him to authorities alleging sexual harassment or assault since 1980. In addition, another nine former employees told The Times in interviews that he raped them, touched them inappropriately or proposed sex.
The Times also interviewed the 10 women, all listed as Jane Does, in the lawsuit. Most alleged that Mr. Nygard raped them during so-called “pamper parties” in the Bahamas, where he’s been a resident since 1986. The parties traditionally took place on Sundays at Mr. Nygard’s lavish estate, offering mostly young, female guests a taste of luxury — pedicures, massages, Jet Ski rides and endless alcohol.
The company’s headquarters and flagship store, near Times Square.Credit...Elizabeth D. Herman for The New York Times
Mr. Nygard has denied all allegations, blaming them on his adversary and neighbor in the Bahamas, the hedge-fund billionaire Louis Bacon. Mr. Bacon hired private investigators to pursue criminal charges against Mr. Nygard, saying he wanted to get justice for the women.
It’s not the first time that Mr. Nygard has been investigated by federal authorities — the F.B.I. investigated him briefly in late 2015 and the summer of 2017 on allegations of sex trafficking. The Department of Homeland Security also investigated Mr. Nygard for nine months, starting in 2016. All the investigations fizzled.
On Tuesday morning, F.B.I. agents and the police were in the lobby and the sixth floor of the Nygard building near Times Square. About eight vehicles with federal parking placards were outside. His flagship store and the corporate headquarters of Nygard International are emblazoned with his name and feature a large picture of him, golden muscles flexing, gray hair flowing.
Even though the alleged crimes described to The Times happened in the Bahamas, it’s possible to bring both criminal and civil cases against Mr. Nygard in New York because his corporate headquarters is here.
Mr. Nygard has long surrounded himself with women, traveling with an entourage of models and paid girlfriends. An avowed playboy, he has fathered at least 10 children with eight women. He demanded a steady supply of sex partners who hunted for young women at shops, clubs and restaurants to invite to parties and dinners at his Bahamas home, six former employees told The Times.
His private multinational company caters to middle-class women, selling leggings and tunics at his own outlets and Dillard’s department stores. Mr. Nygard was estimated to be worth roughly $750 million in 2014 by
Canadian Business magazine.
He founded the office in Winnipeg, and maintains an office there and in Toronto.
William K. Rashbaum and Grace Ashford contributed reporting.
Kim Barker is an enterprise reporter, focusing on long-term projects and narrative writing. Before joining The Times in 2014, she was a reporter at ProPublica and the South Asia bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune.
@Kim_Barker
Catherine Porter is the Canada bureau chief, based in Toronto. Before she joined the Times in 2017, she was a columnist and feature writer for The Toronto Star, Canada’s largest-circulation newspaper.
@porterthereport
