Mike Jeffries, the former chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch, has been deemed competent to stand trial on sex-trafficking and prostitution charges, according to prison officials, following a period of hospitalization.
In May, a court declared Jeffries “mentally incompetent,” citing diagnoses of dementia and late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. The judge mandated a treatment period of up to four months to assess his potential for regaining competency.
However, U.S. prosecutors now assert that medical professionals have determined Jeffries is fit to proceed to trial.
Jeffries, aged 81, was arrested and charged last October alongside his British partner, Matthew Smith, 61, and James Jacobson, 72, who is alleged to have acted as their intermediary. All three individuals have denied the accusations.
According to court documents, Jeffries was released from FMC Butner, a federal correctional facility in North Carolina specializing in inmates with specific health requirements, in late November.
In a letter to Judge Nusrat Choudhury, prosecutors stated that prison authorities concluded Jeffries is “able to understand the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him and to assist properly in his own defense.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan Farrell noted during a court hearing on Thursday that this assessment was based on evaluations by a neuropsychologist and a psychologist.
The court heard that a final competency hearing is scheduled for early 2026, with prosecutors requesting a trial date in October of the same year.
One alleged victim, who preferred to remain anonymous due to ongoing interviews with the FBI as part of its criminal investigation, expressed shock and relief at the revised opinion regarding Jeffries’ fitness to stand trial.
“For the first time, it feels like we’re now moving toward a future where he must answer for what happened and for what so many of us endured.”
“It means the truth could finally be heard in a courtroom, and for survivors, that moment for accountability has been a long time coming.”
“I hope the system will finally require him to stand up and face the weight of everything he’s spent years avoiding.”
The former fashion executive and two associates face charges of orchestrating an international sex-trafficking and prostitution operation spanning from at least 2008 to 2015.
All three have entered not guilty pleas to the charges, which carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Federal prosecutors allege they exploited their wealth and influence to prey on vulnerable men for sexual gratification, employing force, fraud, and coercion to compel aspiring models into “violent and exploitative” sexual acts.
Their arrests followed a 2023 BBC documentary and ongoing podcast series which detailed the trio’s alleged involvement in a sophisticated scheme to recruit young men for sex around the world during Jeffries’ tenure as CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch.
In March, a court mandated that Abercrombie & Fitch cover Jeffries’ criminal defense costs, a sum lawyers estimate could reach millions, based on an indemnification agreement he signed upon his departure in 2014.
Subsequently, in May, Brian Bieber, Jeffries’ criminal defense attorney, stated that his client had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy Body disease, and the residual effects of a traumatic brain injury, requiring round-the-clock care, as confirmed by two medical experts.
In addition to the criminal charges, Jeffries, his partner Matthew Smith, and Abercrombie & Fitch are defending against multiple civil lawsuits filed by alleged victims.
Earlier this year, the BBC revealed that over 40 men have presented civil allegations of rape, sexual assault, or drugging, accusations which Jeffries and Smith “vehemently deny.”
Abercrombie & Fitch did not respond to requests for comment, but has previously stated it had no knowledge of the alleged sexual misconduct or sex trafficking, adding that “up until the moment that the BBC’s reporting was released in October 2023, there was nothing public about the allegations against Jeffries.”
The company stated that new leadership has since transformed the organization, which now has “zero tolerance for abuse, harassment or discrimination of any kind.”