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This article contains descriptions of sexual exploitation, coercion, and assault.
Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries and his partner, Matthew Smith, have been arrested Tuesday on sex trafficking and interstate prostitution charges.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of New York, the couple and a third man, James Jacobson, were arrested as part of an investigation by the FBI and federal prosecutors into whether the three accused men were running an “international sex trafficking and prostitution enterprise” that involved sexually exploiting young men at sex events hosted both in the United States and internationally. Jeffries served as Abercrombie & Fitch’s CEO from 1992 to 2014.
The FBI opened its investigation last year after the BBC published a report in which 12 men described attending or organizing events in which they performed sexual acts for Jeffries and Smith between 2009 and 2015.
“To anyone who thinks they can exploit and coerce others by using the so-called casting couch system, this case should serve as a warning,” Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said during a live-streamed October 22 press conference addressing the men’s arrest. “Prepare to trade that couch for a bed in federal prison.”
During the press conference, Peace described a “referral system and interview process” that Jeffries and his associates used to select men for participation in the sex events. Peace said that this process did not include disclosing the full extent and nature of the sexual activity that would be required of them, but indicated that participating in the events could yield modeling jobs with Abercrombie & Fitch or otherwise benefit their careers. Peace said that the case currently includes 15 John Does but that the investigation is ongoing, and that more people may come forward now that arrests have been made.
According to Peace, men at the events were pressured to consume alcohol, poppers, and Viagra, and were prevented from leaving until Jeffries and Smith allowed them to. The couple allegedly injected men with erection-inducing medication and when they did not or could not consent, were sexually assaulted.
Jeffries and Smith will make their initial appearances today in federal court in the Southern District of Florida while Jacobson will make his appearance today in St. Paul, Minnesota. All three will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York later this week or early next week, Peace said.
“The defendants allegedly preyed on the hopes and dreams of their victims by exploiting, abusing, and silencing them to fulfill their own desires, with insidious secret intentions. This case is yet another example of individuals using their wealth, power, or reputation to manipulate and control others for their personal gratification,” James Dennehy, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office, said in the statement.
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