Lawyers for former Abercrombie CEO Michael Jeffries say his dementia may leave him unable to stand trial for sexual harassment

Lawyers for former Abercrombie CEO Michael Jeffries say his dementia may leave him unable to stand trial for sexual harassment

Defense attorneys say the former longtime CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch may be suffering from dementia and that a competency hearing is needed to determine whether sexual harassment charges can be brought against him.

Michael Jeffries’ attorneys said in court papers unsealed Monday in federal court in Central Islip, Long Island, that a neuropsychologist who examined Jeffries in October concluded he likely had dementia with behavioral disorders, Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia.

Michael Jeffries (center), former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, walks with his attorney Brian Bieber (left) after a hearing at the Paul G. Rogers Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday, October 22. 2024. AP

The lawyers wrote that the neuropsychologist concluded that cognitive impairments, including memory impairment, reduced attention, slow processing speed and mild confusion, meant Jeffries was unable to assist his lawyers.

In a joint letter to the judge, defense attorneys and prosecutors suggested that experts who evaluated Jeffries testify at a two-day competency hearing in June so that a competency decision could follow.

A spokesman for the prosecutor’s office said Tuesday that the office would have no further comment.

Jeffries, 80, is free on a $10 million bond after pleading not guilty in October to federal charges of sex trafficking and interstate prostitution.

Prosecutors allege Jeffries, his romantic partner and a third man lured men to drug-fueled sex parties in the Hamptons on Long Island by promising them to model for the retailer’s ads.

Jeffries, 80, is free on a $10 million bond after pleading not guilty in October to federal charges of sex trafficking and interstate prostitution. RELATED PRESS
Jeffries’ lawyers believe the former longtime CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch may suffer from dementia and that a competency hearing is needed to determine whether sexual harassment charges can be brought against him. Getty Images

Jeffries left Abercrombie in 2014 after more than two decades leading the clothing retailer once known for its preppy, all-American aesthetic and marketing featuring shirtless male models.

In an indictment unsealed in October, prosecutors alleged that 15 accusers were induced through “coercion, fraud and coercion” between 2008 and 2015 in New York City and the Hamptons, the wealthy summer resort on Long Island where Jeffries has a Attending sex parties at home and in hotels in England, France, Italy, Morocco and St. Barts.

According to prosecutors, the men were sometimes instructed to wear costumes, use sex toys and endure painful, erection-inducing penile injections.

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