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Former Abercrombie & Fitch chief executive Mike Jeffries was recorded saying to his UK-based partner that they were screwed and in big trouble if he was found able to face trial on trafficking accusations later this year, a federal court in NY has learned.

The recordings were included in in excess of 100 recorded calls between the former retail executive and Matthew Smith referred to during a four-day legal competency session this week on Long Island.

Jeffries' attorneys contend that he is suffering with dementia and the onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to be tried next to his partner and their purported middleman in October.

Nevertheless, the prosecution contend their doctors concluded his condition has improved and that the recordings demonstrate he is remarkably focused on being ruled not competent.

In other tapes, Jeffries says he is praying for a good outcome, labeling being found fit as a catastrophe, and says to a doctor: you must find me incompetent, the judge learned.

Court Hearings and Psychiatric Testimony

The conversations were taped last year while he was being treated for a period of months in a mental health unit at a correctional institution in North Carolina to determine if he could recover competency.

The 81-year-old had previously been found mentally incompetent previously but facility staff then announced in December that he was fit for proceedings subsequent to his hospital stay.

The prosecution informed the judge Jeffries frequently protested incarceration and was caught on tape describing to Smith how terrible incarceration was, stating: that's why we got to succeed.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their alleged middleman James Jacobson, 73, were charged with orchestrating a worldwide trafficking and prostitution business in October 2024.

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

Their being taken into custody followed an investigation that showed the group had been at the core of a complex network sourcing young men for sex around the world while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Honorable Nusrat J. Choudhury will decide in May about whether Jeffries will be tried after considering the testimony of multiple specialists - experts, doctors and neurologists, including prison doctors - who were questioned in court during the hearing.

'Inappropriate' Behavior

Several medical witnesses for the defense, argue that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the lingering impact of a brain trauma, likely Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries exhibits unfiltered and improper behavior, which is part of a spectrum of symptoms.

Instances include Jeffries calling the prosecutor's professional psychologist a cunning bitch, remarking on her hair, informing another expert his clothing was badly made, and referring to his partner Smith as a midget, they say.

He was also recorded in great detail on around 20 recorded calls discussing his travel itinerary for the coming months, even though having been on restricted movement since 2024.

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

Prosecutors suggest this shows his recognition that he would be released if he was declared unfit and the case were dropped.

In contrast, the defense's medical experts disagree, stating it instead points to that Jeffries does not remember his conditions and the seriousness of the case.

"I didn't see the appropriate reaction that I would anticipate someone to have who is facing such grave charges," said one forensic psychiatrist who assessed Jeffries.

"On the contrary, his demeanor during the examination... was as if we were having a meal at his club. There was no sense of alarm."

Diverging Psychiatric Assessments

Evidence indicated there is data that Jeffries' mental decline commenced in 2013, when tests showed brain shrinkage, which was exacerbated by a incident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the moment of the 2018 incident and his medical records showed he persisted in drinking following being hospitalised, but an expert told the judge he did not think his typical alcohol consumption had a major impact on his state.

Following the fall, Jeffries became psychotic, and began seeing things, with one episode in 2019 where he was located in his underwear, immobile, in a nearby property.

Experts from a prison hospital testified that Jeffries was able after assessing him over four months in prison.

They assert his intellectual functioning did not match Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be absolutely determined until an examination could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has undergone... he still is more capable and more able cognitively than probably 95% of the patients that we assess for competency," testified one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, wearing a formal wear in the court, was reported to be cheerful and rather engaging during interactions in prison, and was deliberately testing the limits, sometimes using informal language.

They found Jeffries with slight deficits and indicated his results may have risen since 2023 from borderline or deficient to typical because of stopping drinking and improved treatment during his confinement.

109 Prison Calls Present Issues

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