Abercrombie & Fitch clothing brand’s former CEO Mike Jeffries stands accused of exploiting young men at his sex parties, according to BBC News.
The outlet said Tuesday the brand is probing the allegations against Jeffries, who stepped down from his position in 2014 with a $25 million retirement package.
“A BBC investigation found an organised network used a middleman to recruit young adult men for the events with Mr Jeffries and his partner Matthew Smith, with some alleging they were abused,” the report said, adding there was no evidence company leaders knew about the allegations.
Jeffries is accused of exploiting the men for sex at events he hosted at his homes in New York and inside hotels in several European cities.
The events reportedly occurred between 2009 and 2015, and several men who attended claimed a middleman, identified as James Jacobson, recruited them.
The BBC report continued:
Half the men who told the BBC about their recruitment alleged they had been initially misled about the nature of the events or not told sex was involved. Others said they understood the events would be sexual, but not exactly what was expected of them. All were paid.
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Men who attended these events told the BBC Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith would engage in sexual activity with about four men – or “direct” them to have sex with each other. Afterwards, the men said staff at the event handed them envelopes filled with thousands of dollars in cash.
Each of the men in the group said they felt pressured into signing non-disclosure agreements, Good Morning America reported Tuesday.
“There wasn’t a lot of time to look through and feel comfortable,” one man said, while another explained, “I don’t recall what was in that. It was taken away from me immediately after signing it.”
A Netflix documentary covered how Abercrombie & Fitch began “burning out,” WGN News reported in 2022:
In 2019, CNBC questioned if Abercrombie & Fitch could make a “comeback” following several “missteps” and “controversial remarks” from its CEO at the time.
“In 2013, comments resurfaced from a 2006 Salon article, in which former CEO Mike Jeffries said the retailer would only sell clothes to attractive people,” the outlet said, noting the company has since “adopted a more inclusive attitude”:
A civil lawyer who spoke to the BBC said it was a good idea for prosecutors to probe if the case involving the young men could be considered sex trafficking.
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