Jail Phone Call Tapes Raise Concerns About Former Abercrombie Boss' Ability for Trial

One-time A&F top executive Mike Jeffries was taped saying to his associate how they were screwed and in deep trouble if he was deemed fit to stand trial on sex trafficking accusations in the coming months, a federal court in NY has been told.

The taped conversations were among more than 100 telephone conversations between the one-time CEO and Matthew Smith referred to during a four-day mental competency session recently on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers assert that he is battling dementia and the onset of Alzheimer's and is incapable to be tried alongside his partner and their alleged facilitator in October.

However, prosecutors say their medical experts found his condition has gotten better and that the calls show he is remarkably fixated on being ruled unfit.

In other tapes, Jeffries states he is hoping for a good outcome, labeling being ruled able as a disaster, and instructs a medical professional: you must find me unfit, the judge learned.

Judicial Process and Psychiatric Evidence

The recordings were made the previous year while he was being evaluated for four months in a treatment center at a correctional institution in North Carolina to determine if he could recover fitness.

The 81-year-old had previously been found not competent last May but facility staff then stated in December that he was competent for trial following his treatment period.

Government attorneys informed the court Jeffries often protested life in jail and was caught on tape describing to Smith how terrible incarceration was, remarking: that's why we got to make this work.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their purported middleman James Jacobson, 73, were accused with running a global human trafficking and prostitution enterprise in October 2024.

They have denied the allegations, which carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Their arrests followed an exposé that revealed the trio had been at the centre of a elaborate network sourcing men for sex globally while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Honorable Nusrat J. Choudhury will decide in May about whether Jeffries will face trial after reviewing the testimony of multiple specialists - forensic psychologists, psychiatrists and medical experts, including facility doctors - who were cross-examined in the courtroom this week.

'Unrestrained' Conduct

Several defense witnesses, testify that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the lingering impact of a traumatic brain injury, suspected Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries exhibits disinhibited and off-color conduct, which is symptomatic of a spectrum of cognitive symptoms.

Reported incidents include Jeffries calling the prosecutor's psychologist a cunning bitch, remarking on her hair, telling another expert his clothing was ill-fitting, and referring to his partner Smith as a derogatory term, the court heard.

He was also recorded in minute detail on around 20 jail conversations talking about his trips abroad for the coming months, despite having been on house arrest since 2024.

"I don't want to go on trips without you," Jeffries was heard saying to Smith from prison.

Prosecutors argue this demonstrates his recognition that he would regain his freedom if he was ruled unfit and the case were dropped.

Conversely, the defence's witnesses disagree, stating it instead highlights that Jeffries has forgotten his legal restrictions and the seriousness of the situation.

"He lacked the normal emotional response that I would anticipate someone to have who is facing such grave allegations," testified one forensic psychiatrist who evaluated Jeffries.

"Instead, his demeanor throughout the evaluation... was similar to we were having a meal at his home. There was no indication of anxiety."

Opposing Medical Diagnoses

Reports indicated there is information that Jeffries' mental decline started in 2013, when imaging showed brain shrinkage, which was exacerbated by a incident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the time of the 2018 event and his history showed he continued drinking subsequent to being hospitalized, but an expert told the judge he did not think his typical alcohol consumption had a significant effect on his health.

After the fall, Jeffries experienced psychosis, and started having visions, with one episode in 2019 where he was located in his underwear, immobile, in a neighbour's garden.

Doctors from a prison hospital said that Jeffries was fit after assessing him over several months in prison.

They say his mental faculties were not consistent with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an post-mortem could be performed.

"Even given the deterioration that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is sharper and more functioning intellectually than probably 95% of the inmates that we assess for competency," testified one expert.

Jeffries, dressed in a formal wear in the courtroom, was described as cheerful and fairly engaging during interactions in the facility, and was deliberately being provocative, on occasion using familiar terms.

They assessed Jeffries with mild neurocognitive deficits and suggested his performance on tests may have risen since 2023 from low or impaired to typical because of abstinence from alcohol and better medication management during his evaluation.

109 Jail Recordings Raise Concerns

Fundamental to establishing fitness is whether Jeffries grasps the charges against him, their penalties, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial