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Ex- Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries was recorded informing his UK-based partner how they are finished and in grave danger if he was declared fit to go to trial on sex trafficking charges in the coming months, a federal court in NY has heard.

The taped conversations were included in in excess of 100 phone calls between the one-time CEO and Matthew Smith referred to during a lengthy legal competency session on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers contend that he is coping with dementia and late onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to be tried next to his partner and their purported facilitator in October.

Nevertheless, government lawyers argue their doctors determined his condition has stabilized and that the calls show he is extremely preoccupied on being ruled incompetent.

In further audio clips, Jeffries states he is praying for a good outcome, characterizing being deemed competent as a disaster, and tells a physician: you must find me unfit, the Central Islip court was told.

Legal Proceedings and Medical Evidence

The calls were made in the past year while he was being held for several months in a mental health unit at a US prison in North Carolina to determine if he could restore competency.

The elderly defendant had in the past been deemed mentally incompetent in May but facility staff then declared in December that he was fit for trial following his hospital stay.

Government attorneys informed the court Jeffries frequently griped about life in jail and was heard explaining to Smith how horrible jail was, adding: so we must make this work.

Context

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their purported go-between James Jacobson, 73, were accused with operating a global sex trafficking and commercial sex enterprise in October 2024.

They have denied the allegations, which could result in a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Their detentions were prompted by an exposé that revealed the trio had been at the heart of a elaborate network scouting individuals for sex around the world while Jeffries was the head of Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Honorable Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will stand trial after considering the evidence of several professionals - forensic psychologists, psychiatrists and brain specialists, including facility doctors - who were cross-examined in proceedings this week.

'Unrestrained' Behavior

A trio of medical witnesses for the defense, testify that Jeffries is mentally incompetent due to the lingering impact of a brain trauma, probable dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They stated that Jeffries exhibits disinhibited and improper behavior, which is consistent with a set of cognitive symptoms.

Reported incidents are Jeffries referring to the prosecution's expert witness a derogatory term, praising her hair, telling another expert his clothing was badly made, and describing his partner Smith as a dwarf, according to testimony.

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

"I don't want to go on trips without you," Jeffries was heard saying to Smith from prison.

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

Conversely, the defence's medical experts counter, saying it instead points to that Jeffries has forgotten his conditions and the seriousness of the charges.

"He lacked the normal reaction that I would expect someone to have who is facing such serious allegations," testified one doctor who assessed Jeffries.

"Instead, his demeanor during the assessment... was as if we were having a chat at his club. There was no sign of alarm."

Opposing Neurological Opinions

Reports indicated there is data that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration commenced in 2013, when tests showed reduction in volume, which was exacerbated by a accident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the moment of the 2018 fall and his history showed he kept on drinking following being treated, but an expert told the judge he did not think his overall drinking had a significant effect on his health.

In the wake of the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and began hallucinating, with one episode in 2019 where he was discovered in his underclothes, incapacitated, in a neighbour's garden.

Medical professionals from a Federal Medical Center said that Jeffries was fit after observing him over four months in custody.

They assert his mental faculties did not match Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be absolutely determined until an autopsy could be performed.

"Even given the reduction that Mr Jeffries has experienced... he still is sharper and more functioning mentally than probably 95% of the patients that we assess for fitness," stated one expert.

Jeffries, wearing a formal wear in the court, was described as lighthearted and quite charismatic during evaluations in prison, and was deliberately being provocative, sometimes using familiar address.

They found Jeffries with slight deficits and said his performance on tests may have gotten better since 2023 from low or impaired to normal because of stopping drinking and improved treatment during his stay.

109 Jail Recordings Raise Concerns

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