🔗 Share this article

Former the fashion retailer CEO Mike Jeffries was taped saying to his UK-based partner that they were finished and in big trouble if he was found fit to stand trial on trafficking accusations this autumn, a federal court in NY has heard.

The audio were part of in excess of 100 recorded calls between the former retail executive and Matthew Smith cited during a four-day mental competency proceeding this week on Long Island.

Jeffries' legal team contend that he is coping with cognitive decline and late onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to be tried alongside his partner and their purported intermediary in October.

However, government lawyers say their doctors determined his mental state has stabilized and that the recordings reveal he is incredibly focused on being declared not competent.

In additional audio clips, Jeffries is heard saying he is wishing for a favorable ruling, labeling being found fit as a disaster, and says to a medical professional: you had better rule me incompetent, the judge heard.

Judicial Proceedings and Medical Opinions

The calls were made last year while he was being held for a period of months in a treatment center at a federal prison in North Carolina to determine if he could regain his faculties.

The 81-year-old had in the past been deemed not competent last May but correctional authorities then declared in December that he was fit for trial subsequent to his treatment period.

Government attorneys advised the court Jeffries frequently complained about incarceration and was recorded describing to Smith how awful prison was, stating: which is why we have to succeed.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their purported intermediary James Jacobson, 73, were charged with running a international human trafficking and prostitution business in October 2024.

They have denied the allegations, which could result in a potential penalty of life imprisonment.

Their being taken into custody followed an investigation that uncovered the trio had been at the centre of a sophisticated scheme sourcing individuals for sex globally while Jeffries was the head of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will rule in May about whether Jeffries will stand trial after weighing the testimony of several professionals - psychologists, psychiatrists and neurologists, including correctional physicians - who were cross-examined in the courtroom during the hearing.

'Inappropriate' Behavior

Several defense witnesses, maintain that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the residual effects of a traumatic brain injury, suspected a form of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They stated that Jeffries demonstrates disinhibited and off-color behaviour, which is consistent with a set of dementia symptoms.

Examples are Jeffries referring to the prosecutor's professional psychologist a insult, praising her hair, telling another expert his clothing was badly made, and describing his partner Smith as a derogatory term, they say.

He was also recorded in minute detail on about 20 recorded calls talking about his trips abroad for the near future, even though having been on restricted movement since 2024.

"I can't go on trips without you," Jeffries was heard saying to Smith from incarceration.

The prosecution argue this demonstrates his awareness that he would go free if he was found incompetent and the indictment were dismissed.

Conversely, the defence's medical experts disagree, arguing it instead underscores that Jeffries does not remember his legal restrictions and the seriousness of the case.

"There wasn't the expected affect that I would anticipate someone to have who is confronting such grave allegations," testified one expert who reviewed Jeffries.

"Instead, his demeanor throughout the examination... was almost like we were having a meal at his club. There was no sign of alarm."

Opposing Neurological Diagnoses

Evidence indicated there is information that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration started in 2013, when tests showed brain shrinkage, which was exacerbated by a accident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the time of the 2018 event and his history showed he persisted in drinking after being treated, but an expert told the judge he did not think his overall intake had a major impact on his state.

After the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and started hallucinating, with one event in 2019 where he was found in his underwear, incapacitated, in a neighbour's garden.

Experts from a treatment facility said that Jeffries was able after evaluating him over four months in the facility.

They assert his cognitive abilities did not align with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an autopsy could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has undergone... he still is brighter and more able intellectually than probably 95% of the inmates that we evaluate for fitness," stated one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, wearing a suit and tie in the court, was reported to be lighthearted and fairly charismatic during meetings in the facility, and was deliberately pushing boundaries, sometimes using familiar language.

They diagnosed Jeffries with slight deficits and suggested his results may have risen since 2023 from borderline or impaired to normal because of sobriety and more consistent management of prescriptions during his stay.

109 Prison Calls Raise Questions

Key to establishing competency is whether Jeffries comprehends the charges against him, their consequences, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial