Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries has been arrested in Florida in connection with sexual trafficking allegations. CNBC reported based on information provided Tuesday (October 22, 2024) by a spokesman for federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, New York.
According to a representative for the federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, Jeffries has two associates who are also charged in this case: James Jacobson of Wisconsin and Matthew Smith of West Palm Beach, Florida.
Jeffries and co-defendant Smith will make their initial court appearance in federal court in the Southern District of Florida later Tuesday. and another Jacobson will be presented in the US District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. Jeffries, Smith, and Jacobson will be arraigned in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York at a later date, the spokesman said.
Brian Bieber, the attorney for Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Jeffries, told CNBC that “we will respond in detail to the allegations after the indictment is unsealed and when appropriate,” adding that “when appropriate, but plan to do so in the courthouse”—not the media.
Abercrombie, Jeffries, and Smith were sued for allegedly ignoring the former CEO’s sexual misconduct a year prior to the criminal case. According to the federal civil lawsuit, Jeffries was involved in a sex trafficking ring that took advantage of young men who wanted to work as models for the company.
Edwards Henderson (the law firm representing the plaintiffs in the case) told CNBC, “Today’s arrests are monumental for the aspiring male models who were victimized by these individuals.”
American businessman Jeffries was CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch from 1992 to 2014.
Also Read: A female doctor was killed in India, Doctors will get security