Former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch indicted on sex trafficking charges

New York (CNN) — Mike Jeffries, the former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, has been indicted on 16 federal counts of sex trafficking and international prostitution in New York, and is accused of leveraging “a network of employees, contractors and security professionals” while he led the retailer.

“While Jeffries was the CEO of one of the most recognizable clothing retailers in the world, he was using his power, his wealth and his influence to traffic men for his own sexual pleasure and that of his romantic partner, Matthew Smith,” Breon Peace, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a Tuesday press conference.

Smith, 61, of West Palm Beach, Florida, and another associate of Jeffries, James Jacobson, 71, of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, were also indicted as part of the case. Jacobson was employed by Jeffries and Smith to recruit, interview and hire men to perform commercial sex acts for Jeffries and Smith, according to the indictment.

The indictment alleges that between December 2008 and March 2015, Jeffries, Smith, and Jacobson engaged in a sex trafficking scheme in which they would recruit men engage in “sex events” at which the alleged victims were given muscle relaxants known as “poppers,” alcohol, lubricant, Viagra, and condoms to perform sex acts. They were allegedly enticed into the acts with modeling and career opportunities at Abercrombie.

Jefferies stepped down as CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch in December, 2014, having run the company since 1992. Abercrombie & Fitch did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“The message from today’s prosecution is clear, sexually exploiting vulnerable human beings is a crime in doing so by dangling dreams of a future in fashion or modeling or or any other business is no different,” U.S. Attorney Peace said at the press conference announcing the indictment.

Jeffries and Smith relied on their vast financial resources, according to the indictment, using Jacobson and a network of employees, contractors, and security professionals, to run a business that was “dedicated to fulfilling their sexual desires and ensuring that their international sex trafficking and prostitution business was kept secret.”

Jeffries and Smith paid for dozens of men to travel within the United States and internationally to various locations, including the Hamptons, New York City and hotels in England, France, Italy, Morocco, and Saint Barthélémy for the purpose of engaging in sex acts with Jeffries, Smith and others, according to the indictment. Some of the men were allegedly paid to attend multiple sex events.

All three defendants were arrested this morning. Jeffries and Smith are scheduled to make their initial appearances this afternoon in federal court in the Southern District of Florida. Jacobson was arrested in Wisconsin and will make his initial appearance in federal court in St. Paul, Minnesota.

They will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.

“We will respond in detail to the allegations after the Indictment is unsealed, and when appropriate, but plan to do so in the courthouse – not the media,” said Brian Bieber, attorney for Michael Jeffries. The attorney for Matthew Smith released the same statement for his client. An attorney for Jacobson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Jacobson’s alleged role was to travel the world to recruit and interview men for the “sex events” and conduct tryouts of potential candidates. Jacobson typically required that the candidates first engage in sex acts with him, according to the indictment.

Jeffries and Smith hired a separate household staff to supervise these parties and directed the men to wear costumes, use sex toys or prepare for particular sex acts, prosecutors allege. The staff would also act as security and controlled who entered and exited the “sex events,” the indictment says, and would not let them leave until Jeffries and Smith decided the events were over.

The accused are alleged to have used a referral system and interview process for the sex events, but didn’t disclose details to the men about what they would entail, including the full extent and nature of the sexual activity that would be required of them, according to the indictment, which included anal intercourse, and the use of sex toys and other objects.

The accused intentionally recruited heterosexual men, who were also physically groomed prior to the sex parties, including shaving their genitals without advance notice. The men were required to relinquish personal items, including clothing, wallets, and cell phones.

On more than one occasion, the indictment says Jeffries and Smith directed others to inject, or personally injected, men with a drug for the purpose of causing the men to engage in sex acts “in which they were otherwise physically incapable or unwilling.”

These injections frequently caused the men to suffer painful physical reactions that lasted for several hours, according to prosecutors.

In some cases the alleged victims had previously worked at Abercrombie stores or had modeled for Abercrombie, and were provided with “itineraries for the Sex Events that did not refer to commercial sex, and instead resembled those often sent to models for photo shoots.” Some of the alleged victims were as young as 19, a source familiar with the case said.

Many of these men were aspiring models, and were led to believe that attending the parties would benefit their careers, prosecutors say. They were also told, according to the indictment, that not complying with certain requests for certain acts would harm their careers. The victims were allegedly required to sign non-disclosure agreements, prohibiting them from sharing any information about the sex events, including with their own family and friends.

Jeffries came under intense scrutiny in 2023 after a BBC investigation alleged the CEO and his partner Matthew Smith used a middleman to recruit and exploit young men. Dozens of men filed a lawsuit last year against Jeffries and Abercrombie & Fitch, alleging the former CEO used his position at the company to exploit and abuse men. Abercrombie & Fitch said at the time it was “appalled” by the allegations and launched an independent investigation into the matter.

As CEO for over two decades, Jeffries transformed Abercrombie & Fitch into a global brand for teen and youth fashion, often with provocative marketing.

In 2006, Jeffries went viral for a Salon interview, when he said: “We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong (in our clothes), and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely.”

In 2013, Abercrombie & Fitch garnered notoriety after a Change.org petition that gained nearly 80,00 signatures called for the company to introduce larger, more inclusive t-shirt sizes. That year, Abercrombie & Fitch succumbed to the pressure and announced they would begin offering plus-sizes in some clothing.

Jeffries stepped down in 2014 amid celebration from fans who wanted to ditch his exclusionary vision for the company.

CNN’s Mark Morales contributed to this report.