Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO pleads not guilty to sex trafficking and prostitution charges

Philip Marcelo
| Associated Press

Central Islip, NY — The former longtime CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch pleaded not guilty Friday to federal sex trafficking and interstate prostitution charges.

Michael Jeffries, 80, declined to comment after entering the plea in federal court in Central Islip, Long Island. He is free on $10 million bond and is due back in court on December 12.

Prosecutors allege that for years, Jeffries, his romantic partner and a third man, James Jacobson, 71, lured the men to sex parties, delaying a promise to model for the clothing retailer sometime famous for preppy, All. -American aesthetics and marketing with shirtless male models.

Jacobson, who was employed by Jeffries when prosecutors say the murders took place, also pleaded not guilty and declined to speak to reporters afterward.

In charges announced earlier this week, prosecutors say 15 accusers were induced by “force, fraud and coercion” to engage in drug-fueled sex parties where the men were sometimes directed to wear costumes, use sex toys and endure painful penis that causes erection. injections.

The events took place between 2008 and 2015 in the Hamptons, the wealthy Long Island summer resort where Jeffries has a home, as well as hotels in England, France, Italy, Morocco and St. Barts, according to the indictment.

The allegations echo allegations of sexual misconduct described in media reports and made in a civil case against Jeffries, who left Abercrombie in 2014 after leading the company for more than two decades.

Jeffries was released on bond after appearing in federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday. His bond is secured by a property he and his wife own on Fishers Island, New York.

Jeffries’ partner, Matthew Smith, 61, who also appeared in court in Florida, was detained after prosecutors expressed concern that the dual US and British citizen might flee the country. No arraignment date has been set for Smith.

Jacobson, who prosecutors say recruited men for the sex parties, was arrested in Wisconsin and released on $500,000 bail during his initial appearance in federal court in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Jeffries took over as CEO of Abercrombie in 1992, presiding over the company’s evolution from its roots as a hunting and outdoor goods store founded in Manhattan in 1892 to an integral part of teenage mall culture in the early 2000.

Abercrombie, in a statement posted on Instagram after the arrests, he said he was “appalled and disgusted” by the allegations.

The Ohio company, which also owns the Hollister clothing brand, said it had “transformed” its brands and culture in the decade since Jeffries left.

Abercrombie stopped using “sexualized” photos in marketing materials and stopped the practice of calling store staff “models”. It hired an outside law firm last year to conduct an independent investigation into similar allegations against Jeffries.

“Speaking out and coming forward is not easy, and our thoughts remain with those who have courageously spoken out as part of the federal investigation,” the company wrote in its statement Wednesday. “We have zero tolerance for abuse, harassment or discrimination of any kind and are committed to fully cooperating with law enforcement as the legal process continues.”