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Ex- Abercrombie & Fitch chief executive Mike Jeffries was recorded telling his UK-based partner that they'd be in serious trouble and in big trouble if he was deemed competent to go to trial on trafficking allegations this autumn, a federal court in NY has heard.

The recordings were included in more than 100 phone calls between the ex-fashion boss and Matthew Smith cited during a multi-day mental competency proceeding this week on Long Island.

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

Nevertheless, prosecutors say their health professionals concluded his condition has gotten better and that the recordings reveal he is remarkably preoccupied on being found incompetent.

In additional tapes, Jeffries is heard saying he is wishing for a good outcome, describing being found fit as a disaster, and tells a doctor: you had better declare me incompetent, the court heard.

Judicial Proceedings and Health Evidence

The calls were recorded last year while he was being treated for four months in a treatment center at a federal prison in North Carolina to see if he could regain fitness.

The elderly defendant had previously been found legally unfit in May but facility staff then announced in December that he was fit for trial following his treatment period.

The prosecution informed the court Jeffries often griped about incarceration and was caught on tape telling to Smith how terrible jail was, remarking: which is why we must pull this off.

Context

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their alleged intermediary James Jacobson, 73, were accused with running a international trafficking and prostitution operation in October 2024.

They have denied the allegations, which carry a potential penalty of life in prison.

Their detentions came after an report that uncovered the group had been at the core of a elaborate operation scouting individuals for sex globally while Jeffries was the head of Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Honorable Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will stand trial after reviewing the testimony of multiple specialists - experts, psychiatrists and brain specialists, including facility doctors - who were cross-examined in the courtroom during the hearing.

'Disinhibited' Behaviour

Three defence experts, testify that Jeffries is cognitively impaired due to the after-effects of a head injury, suspected Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They stated that Jeffries exhibits unfiltered and socially inappropriate conduct, which is symptomatic of a set of cognitive symptoms.

Examples are Jeffries referring to the prosecution's professional psychologist a cunning bitch, complimenting her hair, informing another expert his clothing was poorly tailored, and referring to his partner Smith as a dwarf, the court heard.

He was also heard in great detail on about 20 recorded calls discussing his international travel plans for the near future, notwithstanding having been on house arrest since 2024.

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

Prosecutors argue this indicates his recognition that he would go free if he was declared incompetent and the charges were dismissed.

In contrast, the defence's expert witnesses have a different view, arguing it instead points to that Jeffries has forgotten his conditions and the seriousness of the case.

"He lacked the appropriate affect that I would expect someone to have who is up against such grave charges," said one forensic psychiatrist who assessed Jeffries.

"Rather, his behavior throughout the examination... was similar to we were having lunch at his club. There was no sense of anxiety."

Opposing Neurological Assessments

Testimony indicated there is data that Jeffries' decline started in 2013, when imaging showed mild atrophy, which was worsened by a accident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the time of the 2018 incident and his records showed he persisted in drinking subsequent to being hospitalised, but an expert told the judge he did not think his general drinking had a significant effect on his state.

After the fall, Jeffries became psychotic, and started seeing things, with one episode in 2019 where he was discovered in his underwear, unable to move, in a nearby property.

Doctors from a treatment facility said that Jeffries was able after evaluating him over an extended period in custody.

They assert his intellectual functioning were not consistent with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be conclusively diagnosed until an autopsy could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is more capable and more able mentally than probably 95% of the inmates that we assess for competency," said one doctor.

Jeffries, wearing a formal wear in the hearing, was reported to be lighthearted and rather charismatic during evaluations in the facility, and was purposely being provocative, on occasion using disrespectful language.

They assessed Jeffries with mild neurocognitive deficits and said his testing scores may have improved since 2023 from borderline or deficient to normal because of sobriety and improved treatment during his stay.

109 Prison Calls Prompt Questions

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