2024-10-22 23:01:00
The former boss of the US fashion group Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries, has been charged in New York with serious sex crimes against aspiring models. As the head of “one of the most well-known clothing retailers in the world, he used his power, wealth and influence to use men for his own sexual pleasure and that of his partner,” said District Attorney Breon Peace in the New York borough of Brooklyn on Tuesday (local time). .
He took advantage of the appeal of the Abercrombie brand, which the young men saw as a “ticket to success in the modeling industry.” The abuse was committed against at least 15 people and occurred between 2008 and 2015, Peace said. The prosecution is seeking a trial against Jeffries, his then-partner and a third person.
Just over a year ago, several men accused Jeffries and his partner of sexually exploiting them at events. According to media reports, the couple used a middleman to find young men for themselves. Jeffries left the group in 2014. The now 80-year-old had created a controversial image in the past with statements that he only wanted “cool, good-looking people” as customers.
According to the indictment, Jeffries and his partner hired a third man to find victims for the two of them. Men were selected from all over the world. Jeffries’ partner then arranged for them to be flown to events with the company boss, for example to New York City or to hotels around the world – including England, France, Italy and Morocco. “They led men to believe that participating in these sexual events could lead to modeling opportunities at Abercrombie or otherwise benefit their careers,” Peace continued.
The alleged victims signed appropriate confidentiality agreements before the events. Personal items such as smartphones also had to be handed over. “In order to maintain the secrecy of these events, the defendants led the men to believe that not complying with requests to engage in certain sexual acts during the events could harm their careers,” the prosecutor continued.
Alcohol, Viagra and muscle relaxants were also administered. On more than one occasion there was “invasive sexual and violent contact with body parts and other objects” without consent. “We have extensive evidence. We have travel records, we have financial records, we have statements from victims and other witnesses. So we believe we have a lot of evidence to support the charges in this case,” Peace said.
According to prosecutors, Jeffries and his partner spent millions of dollars on the prostitution ring: “This included hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash for commercial sex, large amounts of money for the staff who ran the sex events, money for domestic travel, foreign travel, hotel rooms, security company services” as well other costs.
According to media reports, the defendants are at least partially in the US state of Florida, but will be brought to New York over the next few days and brought to court there on Friday. According to the public prosecutor’s office, Jeffries is free again on bail of ten million dollars (9.24 million euros) after a brief arrest.
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