Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries & His Partner Arrested For Sex Trafficking Of 12 Men, Used Security Firm To Surveil Victims

On Tuesday, former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch Mike Jeffries was arrested after allegations of sex trafficking from over a dozen men.

Bombshell allegations were dropped last year when eight men accused Jeffries, who was CEO for over 20 years, of sexually exploiting and coercing them at extravagant parties.

Along with Jeffries, his longtime romantic partner Matt Smith, who would allegedly attend the parties, and Jim Jacobson, who would recruit victims for the events, were arrested. The three have been accused of running an international sex trafficking and prostitution business that recruited young men for parties in the U.S. and abroad. Prosecutors allege that Jeffries and Smith “spent millions of dollars to create a massive infrastructure” around the sex events.

This is not the first scandal involving Abercrombie and Fitch, as the brand has a long history of negative publicity. In 2003, black, Asian and Latino employees filed a class action lawsuit that accused the brand of sidelining them. Critics say that Abercrombie & Fitch promotes an exclusionary fashion style based on wealth and appearance.

in 2013, Jefferies apologized for saying he only wanted certain “types of people” in their stores.

Jeffries, Smith and Jacobson allegedly used “a full-service security company that oversaw non-disclosure agreements, conducted background checks and surveilled witnesses, among other things,” to cover up the events, which were said to have occurred between 2008 and 2015, charging documents read. 

The state has called for Jeffries to be held on a $10 million bond and $500,000 for Jacobson. As Smith is perceived as a heightened flight risk, the memo asked him to be denied bond and detained.

One of the victims first told BBC, “I think that [this experience] stole any ounce of innocence that I had left. It mentally messed me up. But with the language I now have today, I can sit here and tell you that I was taken advantage of.”