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Ex- Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries was heard on tape saying to his associate how they are in serious trouble and in grave danger if he was found fit to face trial on trafficking accusations later this year, a New York federal court has learned.

The recordings were included in more than 100 recorded calls between the former retail executive and Matthew Smith cited during a lengthy legal competency session this week on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers assert that he is coping with cognitive decline and late onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to face trial next to his partner and their accused intermediary in October.

However, government lawyers contend their health professionals determined his condition has gotten better and that the recordings reveal he is remarkably focused on being found unfit.

In additional audio clips, Jeffries is heard saying he is hoping for a positive result, describing being deemed competent as a calamity, and instructs a doctor: you had better rule me unfit, the judge learned.

Judicial Process and Medical Opinions

The calls were recorded last year while he was being treated for four months in a mental health unit at a US prison in North Carolina to see if he could regain his faculties.

The octogenarian had earlier been ruled not competent in May but prison officials then stated in December that he was competent for trial following his evaluation.

The prosecution told the court Jeffries frequently protested prison conditions and was heard describing to Smith how terrible prison was, remarking: so we got to make this work.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their accused intermediary James Jacobson, 73, were charged with orchestrating a global sex trafficking and commercial sex operation in October 2024.

They have entered not guilty pleas the allegations, which could result in a potential penalty of life imprisonment.

Their being taken into custody came after an exposé that revealed the group had been at the core of a sophisticated operation recruiting individuals for sex globally while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Presiding Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will rule in May about whether Jeffries will face trial after weighing the evidence of several professionals - experts, doctors and neurologists, including prison doctors - who were questioned in court during the hearing.

'Unrestrained' Behavior

A trio of medical witnesses for the defense, maintain that Jeffries is cognitively impaired due to the lingering impact of a head injury, probable dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They stated that Jeffries shows disinhibited and off-color behaviour, which is symptomatic of a range of dementia symptoms.

Examples involve Jeffries calling the prosecutor's professional psychologist a insult, praising her hair, telling another expert his clothing was poorly tailored, and describing his partner Smith as a dwarf, the court heard.

He was also heard in great detail on about 20 jail conversations talking about his trips abroad for the next few months, notwithstanding having been on restricted movement since 2024.

"I don't want to go on trips without you," Jeffries was overheard telling Smith from prison.

Prosecutors contend this indicates his understanding that he would be released if he was found incompetent and the case were dropped.

In contrast, the defense's medical experts counter, arguing it instead points to that Jeffries has forgotten his conditions and the severity of the situation.

"I didn't see the appropriate emotional response that I would anticipate someone to have who is facing such serious charges," stated one forensic psychiatrist who assessed Jeffries.

"Rather, his manner during the evaluation... was similar to we were having lunch at his country club. There was no sign of anxiety."

Diverging Psychiatric Assessments

Reports indicated there is information that Jeffries' mental decline began in 2013, when imaging showed reduction in volume, which was exacerbated by a accident in 2018.

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

Following the fall, Jeffries became psychotic, and started hallucinating, with one event in 2019 where he was discovered in his underwear, unable to move, in a neighbor's yard.

Experts from a Federal Medical Center said that Jeffries was able after assessing him over an extended period in prison.

They contend his cognitive abilities did not match Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an post-mortem could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is more capable and more functioning cognitively than probably 95% of the inmates that we test for competency," testified one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, wearing a formal wear in the hearing, was described as lighthearted and fairly engaging during meetings in the facility, and was purposely being provocative, at times using informal language.

They found Jeffries with mild neurocognitive deficits and said his performance on tests may have improved since 2023 from low or impaired to average because of sobriety and more consistent medication management during his confinement.

109 Jail Recordings Prompt Concerns

Central to assessing competency is whether Jeffries grasps the allegations against him, their penalties, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial