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

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) — The former longtime CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch pleaded not guilty Friday. federal sex trafficking and interstate prostitution charges.

Michael Jeffries, 80, declined to comment after filing the lawsuit in federal court in Central Islip on Long Island. He is free on $10 million bail and is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 12.

Prosecutors say that over the years, Jeffries, his romantic partner and a third man, 71-year-old James Jacobson, lured men attend sex parties with the promise of modeling for a clothing retailer once known for its conservative, all-American aesthetic and marketing with shirtless male models.

Jacobson, who was Jeffries’ employee when prosecutors alleged the crimes were committed, also pleaded not guilty and declined to speak to reporters afterward.

In charges announced earlier this week, prosecutors allege the 15 accusers were induced by “force, fraud and coercion” to participate in drug-fueled sex parties where men were sometimes encouraged to wear suits, use sex toys and endure painful, provocative erection genitals. injections.

According to the indictment, the events occurred between 2008 and 2015 in the Hamptons, an affluent summer resort on Long Island where Jeffries has a home, and at hotels in England, France, Italy, Morocco and St. Barts.

The allegations echo allegations of sexual harassment 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 free on bail after appearing in federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday. His bail is secured by a property he and his wife own on pricey Fisher Island, just off Miami.

Jefferies’ partner, 61-year-old Matthew Smith, who also stood trial in Florida, was ordered detained after prosecutors raised concerns the dual US-British citizen could flee the country. Smith’s arraignment date has not yet been set.

Jacobson, who prosecutors said recruited men for 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, overseeing the company’s growth from its roots as a hunting and outdoor retailer founded in Manhattan in 1892 to a bastion of teen mall culture in the early 2000s.

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

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

Abercrombie stopped using “sexualized” photos in marketing materials and stopped calling store employees “models.” Last year, she hired an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation into similar allegations against Jeffries.

“Speaking up and coming forward is not easy, and our thoughts remain with those who bravely raised their voices in the federal investigation,” the company wrote in a statement Wednesday. “We have no tolerance for abuse, harassment or discrimination of any kind and are committed to fully cooperating with law enforcement as the legal process continues.”

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