WINNIPEG -- Former fashion mogul Peter Nygard will face a hearing under the Extradition Act in November.
CTV News Winnipeg has learned the hearing will take place from Nov. 15 to 19 in the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench.
Nygard, 79, was arrested in December 2020 in Winnipeg under the Extradition Act.
He has been charged with nine counts in the Southern District of New York, including racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking of a minor, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, and two counts of transportation for purpose of prostitution.
None of the charges have been proven in court, and Nygard is presumed innocent. Nygard’s lawyers have denied the charges.
Last month, a judge rejected a bail application from Nygard’s lawyers, which would see him released under house arrest. Under the proposed plan, his text messages and emails would be monitored, and there would be an in-home security guard and 24-hour video surveillance.
Nygard remains in custody at Headingley Correctional Centre.
A formal extradition request from the United States was received by Canadian authorities in February. It details the accounts of seven alleged victims who are expected to testify in a criminal trial in that country.
There is a publication ban on any information that could identify the complainants or witnesses.
The women allege their livelihood and their movement became dependent on having sex with Nygard. They say it was coerced through financial means or physical force.
Nygard is also the subject of a class-action lawsuit in the United States involving 57 women with similar allegations.
He stepped down as chairman of his company after the FBI and police raided his offices in New York City in February 2020.
-With files from CTV’s Josh Crabb, Danton Unger and The Canadian Press.
