Mike Jeffries, the former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, is now considered able to face federal sex trafficking charges, even after being previously deemed mentally unfit due to dementia and late-stage Alzheimer’s. This announcement comes from prison officials.
The 81-year-old billionaire has been accused of hosting sex parties where male models were allegedly compensated for sex and drugged. Back in May, he was ruled ineligible for trial because of his illness when he ended up in the hospital.
However, a recent letter submitted to a federal court in Brooklyn indicates that his health might have improved since then.
The acting director of the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina, Blake Lott, stated that Jeffries “understands the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him and is able to appropriately assist in his own defense.”
He didn’t provide further details but mentioned that a report has been given to the judge overseeing the case.
Court documents reveal that Jeffries was released from the Federal Lockup Medical Center on November 21.
His attorney, Brian Beaver, expressed skepticism about the latest assessments, reminding that prior evaluations had indicated Jeffries was incapable of continuing with the case.
“The Bureau of Prisons doctors have a different opinion,” Beaver noted, adding that they are looking forward to the judge evaluating the medical evidence to make decisions about the next steps.
This shift in Jeffries’ legal status was discussed during a phone hearing on Thursday involving both prosecutors and his defense team with U.S. District Judge Nusrat Chaudhry.
Jeffries has been under scrutiny since his arrest in October on federal sex trafficking and prostitution charges, having run Abercrombie from 1992 until 2014.
His legal team has argued that he needs constant care and lacks the capacity to fully grasp the case against him. Multiple medical experts have concluded that his cognitive decline is progressive and irreversible, indicating that he won’t regain competency.
Prosecutors accuse Jeffries, his boyfriend Matthew Smith, and associate James Jacobson of using modeling job offers to lure men to drug-fueled sex parties in locations including New York City, the Hamptons, and abroad. This is not the first time such allegations have surfaced; a separate civil lawsuit claims that two aspiring models were promised lucrative jobs at Abercrombie but ended up drugged, raped, and trafficked instead.
