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Ex- A&F chief executive Mike Jeffries was taped informing his British partner that they are finished and in big trouble if he was found fit to stand trial on human trafficking charges in the coming months, a federal court in NY has heard.

The taped conversations were part of in excess of 100 telephone conversations between the one-time CEO and Matthew Smith cited during a four-day legal competency proceeding on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' legal team argue that he is coping with cognitive decline and the onset of Alzheimer's and is incapable to be tried next to his partner and their alleged intermediary in October.

Nevertheless, the prosecution contend their doctors concluded his health has gotten better and that the calls show he is incredibly fixated on being found unfit.

In further audio clips, Jeffries is heard saying he is wishing for a good outcome, describing being ruled able as a disaster, and says to a doctor: you must rule me unfit, the judge learned.

Judicial Hearings and Health Opinions

The calls were made the previous year while he was being evaluated for a period of months in a treatment center at a federal prison in North Carolina to assess if he could recover competency.

The octogenarian had earlier been ruled mentally incompetent previously but prison officials then declared in December that he was able for proceedings after his treatment period.

Prosecutors advised the judge Jeffries frequently protested incarceration and was caught on tape telling to Smith how awful incarceration was, adding: that's why we must make this work.

Context

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their purported go-between James Jacobson, 73, were indicted with operating a worldwide sex trafficking and prostitution operation in October 2024.

They have denied the accusations, which have a potential penalty of a life term.

Their arrests followed an exposé that uncovered the trio had been at the core of a sophisticated operation sourcing individuals for sex internationally while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Presiding Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will face trial after reviewing the testimony of multiple specialists - experts, psychiatrists and neurologists, including correctional physicians - who were examined in proceedings during the hearing.

'Inappropriate' Behaviour

Several defense witnesses, maintain that Jeffries is mentally incompetent due to the residual effects of a brain trauma, suspected a form of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They stated that Jeffries demonstrates unfiltered and off-color behaviour, which is part of a spectrum of cognitive symptoms.

Reported incidents involve Jeffries calling the prosecutor's expert witness a derogatory term, remarking on her hair, telling another expert his clothing was badly made, and referring to his partner Smith as a dwarf, they say.

He was also taped in minute detail on approximately 20 recorded calls planning his travel itinerary for the near future, despite having been on restricted movement since 2024.

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

The prosecution argue this demonstrates his awareness that he would regain his freedom if he was declared unfit and the case were dismissed.

Conversely, the defense's medical experts have a different view, arguing it instead underscores that Jeffries has forgotten his conditions and the severity of the situation.

"There wasn't the appropriate affect that I would anticipate someone to have who is facing such severe charges," said one expert who evaluated Jeffries.

"Rather, his demeanor throughout the evaluation... was as if we were having lunch at his home. There was no indication of anxiety."

Diverging Psychiatric Assessments

Testimony indicated there is information that Jeffries' decline commenced in 2013, when tests showed mild atrophy, which was exacerbated by a incident in 2018.

Jeffries had been drinking alcohol at the time of the 2018 fall and his records showed he kept on drinking following being treated, but an expert told the judge he did not think his overall drinking had a significant effect on his state.

In the wake of the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and started seeing things, with one episode in 2019 where he was located in his underclothes, unable to move, in a nearby property.

Medical professionals from a treatment facility testified that Jeffries was able after assessing him over four months in the facility.

They say his intellectual functioning did not match Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be absolutely determined until an post-mortem could be performed.

"Even given the deterioration that Mr Jeffries has experienced... he still is sharper and more capable mentally than probably 95% of the inmates that we assess for competency," testified one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, dressed in a suit and tie in the hearing, was described as jovial and quite charismatic during meetings in the facility, and was deliberately testing the limits, on occasion using familiar language.

They diagnosed Jeffries with mild neurocognitive deficits and suggested his performance on tests may have improved since 2023 from borderline or impaired to typical because of abstinence from alcohol and more consistent medication management during his confinement.

109 Prison Calls Raise Issues

Key to assessing competency is whether Jeffries understands the allegations against him, their implications, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial