- Attorneys for Mike Jeffries asked a judge to rule on whether he is mentally fit for trial.
- Federal prosecutors will likely challenge the move, adding months to pre-trial proceedings.
- The former Abercrombie CEO is accused of running an international sex-trafficking business.
The former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch is seeking to delay his federal sex-trafficking case on mental competency grounds.
Attorneys for the brand's former top executive, Mike Jeffries, asked a Manhattan judge on Monday to schedule a hearing on whether Jeffries is competent to stand trial, a spokesperson for the US attorney's office of the Eastern District of New York told Business Insider in a statement. Federal prosecutors are expected to challenge the move, which will add months to pre-trial proceedings.
The defense will have until December 24 to file papers telling US District Judge Nusrat Choudhury how much of their competency motion can be sealed. The rest of the competency battle will play out throughout the first months of 2025.
The defense has until February 6 to file a doctor's report in support of the competency motion, the spokesperson said. Prosecutors have until April 8 to file their own doctor's report. The competency hearing itself has yet to be scheduled, per the spokesperson. Jeffries is due back in court on March 13, 2025.
"We filed a motion to Determine Mr. Jeffries' Competency to Stand Trial, which will be dealt with in Court as, and when, appropriate — according to the Judge," Brian Bieber, an attorney for Jeffries, told BI in a statement. In court, mental competency refers to whether a defendant is able to understand the basics of what's going on in their criminal case.
On October 22, 2024, Jeffries, his partner, and a third man were arrested in Florida on federal sex-trafficking charges. Prosecutors allege they ran an international sex-trafficking and prostitution business. The men used their brand power to coerce dozens of men, many of whom wanted to become Abercrombie models, to partake in "sex events" in America and abroad, prosecutors allege. Jeffries and Matthew Smith, his partner, allegedly paid for men to travel to their New York homes and international hotels, where they performed sex acts.
Jeffries, 80, served as Abercrombie's CEO from 1992 to 2014. The indictment alleges that the sex-trafficking spanned from approximately 2008 to 2015, though Breon Peace, the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said his office believes "dozens and dozens of men" were victims between 1992 and 2015.
During his time at Abercrombie, Jeffries steered the brand toward a more sexualized image, complete with shirtless models greeting shoppers. He was first hired by Les Wexner, a Jeffrey Epstein associate. At the peak of his career, Jeffries earned an annual eight-figure salary. His retirement package was reportedly around $25 million and he earned yearly payments of $1 million that ended last year.