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Former the fashion retailer CEO Mike Jeffries was heard on tape informing his UK-based partner that they are screwed and in grave danger if he was declared fit to stand trial on sex trafficking accusations this autumn, a New York federal court has heard.

The recordings were among over 100 telephone conversations between the one-time CEO and Matthew Smith cited during a multi-day legal competency hearing on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers argue that he is suffering with dementia and the onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to face trial together with his partner and their purported intermediary in October.

However, the prosecution say their doctors determined his health has stabilized and that the conversations demonstrate he is incredibly focused on being found not competent.

In further recordings, Jeffries says he is hoping for a good outcome, labeling being found fit as a disaster, and says to a doctor: you had better rule me incompetent, the judge heard.

Judicial Proceedings and Psychiatric Evidence

The recordings were made last year while he was being held for several months in a psychiatric facility at a correctional institution in North Carolina to determine if he could restore fitness.

The elderly defendant had previously been found legally unfit last May but prison officials then stated in December that he was fit for proceedings subsequent to his hospital stay.

Government attorneys advised the judge Jeffries often complained about prison conditions and was recorded describing to Smith how horrible prison was, adding: so we have to succeed.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their alleged middleman James Jacobson, 73, were indicted with running a global sex trafficking and commercial sex enterprise in October 2024.

They have entered not guilty pleas the charges, which have a maximum sentence of a life term.

Their arrests came after an investigation that uncovered the three had been at the centre of a complex operation sourcing individuals for sex around the world while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Presiding Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will stand trial after considering the testimony of six experts - experts, doctors and brain specialists, including correctional physicians - who were questioned in court recently.

'Disinhibited' Behavior

A trio of defence experts, maintain that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the lingering impact of a head injury, suspected a form of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries demonstrates unfiltered and off-color behaviour, which is consistent with a range of dementia symptoms.

Instances are Jeffries calling the prosecution's professional psychologist a derogatory term, remarking on her hair, telling another expert his clothing was badly made, and referring to his partner Smith as a midget, the court heard.

He was also taped in great detail on around 20 prison calls planning his trips abroad for the near future, even though having been on home confinement since 2024.

"I can't go on trips without you," Jeffries was recorded saying to Smith from prison.

The prosecution contend this shows his awareness that he would be released if he was ruled incompetent and the case were dismissed.

However, the defense's medical experts counter, arguing it instead points to that Jeffries fails to recall his court-ordered limits and the severity of the case.

"There wasn't the expected emotional response that I would anticipate someone to have who is confronting such grave charges," testified one doctor who reviewed Jeffries.

"Instead, his manner throughout the assessment... was almost like we were having a meal at his country club. There was no sense of anxiety."

Opposing Neurological Opinions

Reports indicated there is data that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration began in 2013, when imaging showed mild atrophy, which was accelerated by a fall in 2018.

Jeffries had been consuming alcohol at the moment of the 2018 fall and his history showed he continued drinking subsequent to being hospitalised, but an expert told the judge he did not think his typical drinking had a decisive influence on his health.

After the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and started seeing things, with one incident in 2019 where he was found in his underclothes, incapacitated, in a nearby property.

Experts from a prison hospital testified that Jeffries was fit after evaluating him over several months in the facility.

They assert his intellectual functioning did not align with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an examination could be performed.

"Even given the reduction that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is brighter and more capable intellectually than probably 95% of the patients that we assess for fitness," testified one expert.

Jeffries, wearing a formal wear in the court, was reported to be jovial and rather personable during evaluations in the facility, and was intentionally testing the limits, on occasion using informal language.

They found Jeffries with slight deficits and said his performance on tests may have improved since 2023 from low or impaired to normal because of sobriety and better medication management during his evaluation.

109 Recorded Conversations Raise Issues

Central to assessing fitness is whether Jeffries understands the charges against him, their penalties, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial