Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries faces life in prison ...
Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Michael Jeffries has been criminally charged by US federal prosecutors with sex trafficking and prostitution involving dozens of men.
The 16-count indictment was unveiled on Tuesday in Brooklyn, New York a decade after the 80-year-old left the retailer he built over 22 years into a popular clothing brand known for sexually charged marketing.
The charges come after a BBC investigation and proposed class action lawsuit accusing Mr Jeffries of baiting young men with the prospect of modelling jobs to lure them into travelling around the world so they could be sexually abused.
US Attorney Breon Peace, whose office won a conviction and 30-year prison term for the singer R. Kelly for sex trafficking, said powerful people have for too long sexually abused young people who yearned for careers in fashion and entertainment.
Michael Jeffries was the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch from 1992 to 2014. (AP: Mark Lennihan, File)
"To anyone who thinks they can exploit and coerce others by using the so-called casting couch system, this case should serve as a warning: Prepare to trade that couch for a bed in federal prison," he said at a press conference.
The defendants also include Jeffries' 61-year-old partner Matthew Smith and 71-year-old James Jacobson, who were both arrested alongside the former CEO and allegedly recruited men.
Each was charged with one count of sex trafficking and 15 counts of interstate prostitution related to 15 unnamed victims between 2008 and 2015.
If convicted, the trio face possible life sentences and mandatory minimum 15-year prison terms for the sex trafficking charges. They face up to 20 years in prison for the interstate prostitution charges.
They are expected to appear in courts in Florida and Minnesota, and may appear in Brooklyn in coming weeks.
Mr Peace plans to seek bail of at least $US10 million ($14.9 million) for Mr Jeffries and $US500,000 ($748,000) for Mr Jacobson, and home arrest for both. He wants Mr Smith, who is a dual US-British citizen, to be jailed pending trial because of the risk of flight.
US federal prosecutors have charged Jeffries with sex trafficking and interstate prostitution related to 15 unnamed victims between 2008 and 2015. (AP: Yuki Iwamura)
Brian Bieber, a lawyer for Mr Jeffries, said in an email that he would respond to the charges in court. Lawyers for Mr Smith did not immediately respond to requests for comment, while Jeremy Schneider, a lawyer for Mr Jacobson, declined to comment.
Abercrombie also declined to comment and was not accused of any wrongdoing. Mr Peace said there was no evidence the alleged crimes took place on company property.
Prosecutors said Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith paid for dozens of men to meet them for sex at their homes in Manhattan and in the Hamptons in Long Island, New York, as well as at hotels in places such as England, France, Italy, Morocco and St. Barts.
The indictment against Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith allege the pair were "dedicated to fulfilling their sexual desires and ensuring that their international sex trafficking and prostitution business was kept secret, thereby maintaining Mr Jeffries' powerful reputation".
Jeffries is accused of baiting young men with the prospect of modelling jobs so they could be sexually abused. Abercrombie & Fitch has not been accused of any wrongdoing. (Reuters: Mike Munden/USA Today Network)
Prosecutors said Mr Jacobson typically conducted "tryouts", where male recruits as young as 19 would have sex with him before being referred to Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith.
They also said the scheme involved muscle relaxants known as "poppers" and props such as large sex toys and high-pressured enemas.
Men were required to sign non-disclosure agreements, and pay damages if they told anyone including family and friends what had occurred.
Mr Jeffries left Ohio-based Abercrombie & Fitch in 2014.
One civil lawsuit filed in New York last year accused Abercrombie of allowing Mr Jeffries to run a sex-trafficking organisation during his 22-year tenure.
The lawsuit said he had modelling scouts scouring the internet for victims, and that some prospective models became sex-trafficking victims.
Abercrombie & Fitch has hired an outside legal firm to independently investigate the allegations made against Jeffries and his co-accused. (Reuters: Benoit Tessier)
Abercrombie last year said it had hired an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation after a report on similar allegations was aired by the BBC.
The BBC investigation included a dozen men who described being at events involving sex acts they said were staged by Jeffries and his partner, Matthew Smith, often at his home in New York and hotels in London, Paris and elsewhere.
When the civil lawsuit was filed in New York last year, Mr Bieber declined to comment on the allegations.
AP/Reuters
