Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries arrested on federal sex trafficking charges

The former CEO of clothing retail giant Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has been indicted on federal charges that he operated a prostitution and international sex trafficking ring that federal authorities said operated in the Hamptons, New York City and other locales around the world and "preyed on the hopes and dreams of the victims."

Michael Jeffries, 80, of West Palm Beach, Florida, was indicted on charges of sex trafficking and engaging in interstate prostitution. Jeffries, who left the retailer in 2014, was arrested along with his romantic partner Matthew Smith, who is also charged in the indictment. Jeffries and Smith, 61, also of West Palm Beach, Florida, are due to appear in court Tuesday in West Palm Beach, Florida.

"While Jeffries was the CEO of one of the most recognizable retailers in the world, he was using his power, his wealth and his influence to traffic men for his own sexual pleasure and that of his romantic partner Matthew Smith," said Breon Peace, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. "The charging documents describe in graphic and disturbing detail the violent and exploitative acts these defendants perpetrated."

Co-defendant James Jacobson, 71, of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, who allegedly acted as a "recruiter" to find men to engage in sex acts with Jeffries and Smith, was arrested in Wisconsin and will be arraigned at the federal courthouse in St. Paul, Minnesota.

In identical emailed statements from Jeffries' Miami, Florida-based attorney Brian H. Bieber and from Smith's defense attorneys Joseph E. Nascimento and Dave Raben, the attorneys said:

"We will respond in detail to the allegations after the Indictment is unsealed, and when appropriate, but plan to do so in the courthouse — not the media."

Jacobson's lawyer did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Peace alleged that between December 2008 and March 2015, Jeffries, Smith and Jacobson operated the international sex trafficking ring using a combination of "force, fraud and coercion" at properties in Water Mill, New York City, England, France, Italy, Morocco and St. Barts by dangling the possibility of fame and proximity to the Abercrombie and Fitch brand. Peace said dozens of men were victims of the defendants.

Jeffries and Smith allegedly employed Jacobson as a recruiter and he engaged in so-called "tryouts," which were sex acts, with the men, who were paid, Peace said. Then Smith would "personally approve" who would meet Jeffries, Peace said. The men were then flown to various properties or hotels to have sex with Jeffiries and Smith, prosecutors said. They were given alcohol, Viagra and the so-called party drug referred to as "poppers" at the events, prosecutors said.

Jeffries "employed a secret staff" in order to operate the sex events, prosecutors said, and the men were forced to hand over their phones and sign nondisclosure agreements in order "to maintain the secrecy of these events," Peace said.

"They caused the men to believe that attending these events could yield modeling opportunities with Abercrombie or otherwise benefit their careers," said Peace.

The indictment names 15 John Doe victims.

Peace said the investigation, performed jointly by the U.S. Attorney's Office, the FBI and the NYPD, is ongoing and praised the alleged victims for coming forward.

"I want to thank the victims who have already come forward," said Peace. "Prosecutions like this are really impossible without the bravery of victims who are willing to report what happened to them to law enforcement."

A spokesperson for Abercrombie & Fitch Co. did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Tuesday.

By Nicole Fuller

nicole.fuller@newsday.com@NicoleFuller

Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.