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Ex- Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries was taped saying to his UK-based partner how they'd be finished and in grave danger if he was declared competent to stand trial on sex trafficking charges in the coming months, a US district court has heard.

The recordings were part of over 100 recorded calls between the one-time CEO and Matthew Smith cited during a four-day legal competency proceeding this week on Long Island.

Jeffries' legal team argue that he is suffering with cognitive decline and late onset of Alzheimer's disease and is not competent to stand trial alongside his partner and their purported intermediary in October.

However, the prosecution argue their doctors found his health has stabilized and that the calls show he is extremely fixated on being ruled not competent.

In additional tapes, Jeffries states he is hoping for a good outcome, describing being ruled able as a disaster, and tells a physician: you must declare me unfit, the Central Islip court heard.

Legal Hearings and Health Testimony

The conversations were taped the previous year while he was being treated for four months in a treatment center at a correctional institution in North Carolina to assess if he could recover his faculties.

The elderly defendant had previously been found not competent in May but facility staff then declared in December that he was competent for proceedings after his hospital stay.

Prosecutors advised the court Jeffries repeatedly complained about incarceration and was recorded describing to Smith how terrible jail was, adding: that's why we have to make this work.

Context

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their alleged intermediary James Jacobson, 73, were indicted with operating a worldwide trafficking and commercial sex business in October 2024.

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

Their detentions came after an exposé that showed the three had been at the heart of a complex operation recruiting individuals for sex internationally while Jeffries was CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Presiding Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will rule in May about whether Jeffries will be tried after reviewing the testimony of several professionals - forensic psychologists, doctors and brain specialists, including correctional physicians - who were examined in the courtroom during the hearing.

'Inappropriate' Conduct

Three medical witnesses for the defense, argue that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the lingering impact of a traumatic brain injury, probable Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They said under oath that Jeffries shows unfiltered and improper behavior, which is consistent with a spectrum of symptoms.

Instances include Jeffries referring to the prosecution's professional psychologist a insult, praising her hair, informing another expert his clothing was ill-fitting, and referring to his partner Smith as a derogatory term, they say.

He was also recorded in great detail on about 20 prison calls planning his travel itinerary for the coming months, even though having been on home confinement since 2024.

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

The prosecution suggest this shows his recognition that he would be released if he was ruled incompetent and the indictment were dropped.

In contrast, the defense's witnesses have a different view, arguing it instead points to that Jeffries has forgotten his court-ordered limits and the seriousness of the charges.

"I didn't see the appropriate emotional response that I would anticipate someone to have who is facing such severe allegations," testified one doctor who reviewed Jeffries.

"Rather, his manner throughout the assessment... was almost like we were having lunch at his country club. There was no indication of anxiety."

Opposing Medical Assessments

Evidence indicated there is data that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration began in 2013, when imaging showed brain shrinkage, which was accelerated by a fall in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the moment of the 2018 event and his history showed he persisted in drinking following being hospitalized, but an expert told the judge he did not think his general alcohol consumption had a significant effect on his health.

Following the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and began seeing things, with one episode in 2019 where he was found in his underclothes, immobile, in a neighbour's garden.

Experts from a prison hospital testified that Jeffries was able after evaluating him over an extended period in the facility.

They contend his cognitive abilities did not align with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an examination could be performed.

"Even given the deterioration that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is sharper and more capable cognitively than probably 95% of the individuals that we evaluate for competency," testified one doctor.

Jeffries, dressed in a formal wear in the hearing, was described as cheerful and quite engaging during meetings in the facility, and was purposely being provocative, on occasion using disrespectful address.

They assessed Jeffries with minor cognitive impairments and suggested his testing scores may have gotten better since 2023 from low or impaired to typical because of stopping drinking and better management of prescriptions during his stay.

109 Prison Calls Present Issues

Key to determining fitness is whether Jeffries grasps the allegations against him, their consequences, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial