Nygard’s lawyer proposes ’21st century’ bail plan during appeal hearing

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This article was published 17/03/2021 (1282 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Peter Nygard is being kept in jail on the basis of “extreme and inflammatory allegations” that are unsupported by the charges against him, his lawyer said at a hearing Thursday.

The fallen fashion mogul is appealing the decision to deny him bail.

Nygard, 79, has been in custody since Dec. 14, when he was arrested on a U.S. extradition warrant. Nygard faces prosecution in New York on nine counts of sex trafficking and racketeering.

He was denied bail last month after Queen’s Bench Justice Shawn Greenberg ruled she was not satisfied Nygard wouldn’t try to tamper with witnesses if he were released.

Nygard’s lawyer, Brian Greenspan, who appeared by video link from Toronto, told court Thursday the U.S. indictment against Nygard dramatically overinflates the allegations against him as detailed in the record of the case provided to court.

The indictment alleges that from 1995 and 2020, Nygard – alongside his business associates and co-conspirators – engaged in a “pattern of criminal conduct involving at least dozens of victims in the United States, the Bahamas and Canada.”

Nygard is accused of raping and sex trafficking young girls, often targeting individuals from “disadvantaged backgrounds” with a “history of abuse,” and keeping them quiet via “threats, false promises of modelling opportunities” and “other coercive means.”

But the record of the case provided to court by justice officials, Greenspan argued, includes the accusations of just six alleged victims, spanning only a dozen years, and includes descriptions of crimes, including sexual assault, that Nygard has not been charged with.

“The strength of the case… relies on the candour of the (state requesting extradition),” Greenspan told Manitoba Court of Appeal Justice Jennifer Pfuetzner. “The whole process requires trust, it requires accuracy,” not a reliance on “overblown allegations.”

It’s not necessary that the Crown put all the detailed allegations before the court at this stage in the process, argued Scott Farlinger, counsel for the attorney general.

“The extradition partner is not required to disclose the entirety of its case,” Farlinger said, not ruling out more charges or additional alleged victims coming forward in the future.

Nygard’s new bail plan includes measures to monitor his telephone calls and electronic communications.

In her ruling last month, Greenberg said security and monitoring measures proposed by Nygard — to satisfy justice officials he would not flee from a $1-million home on John Bruce Road in Winnipeg — would not prevent him from tampering with alleged victims or witnesses by phone, or having someone do it on his behalf.

Under the new plan, which Greenspan described as a “21st century solution,” sophisticated monitoring software would be installed on all of Nygard’s cellphones and electronic devices that would alert a monitoring service of any suspect communications.

“The system we propose… would bring a potential concern to the attention of authorities almost immediately,” Greenspan said.

He proposed designating retired Manitoba Queen’s Bench justice Jeffrey Oliphant as an independent monitor “who would ensure compliance with this strict regime.”

Farlinger countered that the plan does nothing to address concerns Nygard will use “intermediaries” to contact witnesses on his behalf. “It’s no deterrent whatsoever,” he said.

Nygard is being held at Headingley Correctional Centre, where, according to an affidavit provided by assistant superintendent of security Todd Schreyer, he has a cell to himself that can accommodate three inmates, a television, and a phone that he can use from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day.

“No other cell at (the jail) has similar phone access,” Schreyer said in his affidavit.

“Due to Mr. Nygard’s request for constant contact with his legal team, this is the only location at which we can accommodate him and ensure his safety due to the high-profile nature of his case,” Schreyer said.

Nygard is in protective custody and “does not mix with other inmates,” he said.

In response to “dietary concerns,” Nygard was placed on a vegan diet, but in late January opted out and was placed back on the regular diet program.

Greenspan said he didn’t question “the good faith efforts” of jail staff to address Nygard’s needs, but the jail remains a “vulnerable setting for a vulnerable person” whose health, according to an affidavit provided by his doctor, continues to decline.

Nygard is being held in lockdown conditions for 23 ½ hours a day in what amounts to solitary confinement, Greenspan said.

“It’s a lockdown for a nearly 80-year-old man with extreme concerns about his health” as he tries to mount a legal defence for himself, Greenspan said. “It’s an impossible situation.”

Pfuetzner reserved her decision.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca