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Ex- Abercrombie & Fitch chief executive Mike Jeffries was heard on tape informing his British partner how they were screwed and in deep trouble if he was declared fit to stand trial on trafficking charges in the coming months, a US district court has learned.

The recordings were part of over 100 telephone conversations between the ex-fashion boss and Matthew Smith referred to during a four-day mental competency hearing on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers assert that he is coping with dementia and the onset of Alzheimer's disease and is unfit to be tried next to his partner and their accused intermediary in October.

However, the prosecution argue their health professionals determined his health has stabilized and that the conversations reveal he is incredibly preoccupied on being declared incompetent.

In additional recordings, Jeffries says he is praying for a positive result, characterizing being deemed competent as a calamity, and says to a medical professional: you better find me unfit, the Central Islip court was told.

Court Proceedings and Psychiatric Testimony

The calls were taped in the past year while he was being treated for a period of months in a psychiatric facility at a correctional institution in North Carolina to see if he could recover fitness.

The 81-year-old had previously been found not competent previously but prison officials then declared in December that he was competent for trial following his treatment period.

The prosecution informed the judge Jeffries repeatedly protested life in jail and was caught on tape telling to Smith how awful incarceration was, adding: which is why we must pull this off.

Background

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

They have pleaded not guilty the allegations, which could result in a potential penalty of life imprisonment.

Their being taken into custody were prompted by an investigation that revealed the trio had been at the centre of a elaborate scheme scouting men for sex globally while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Honorable Nusrat J. Choudhury will rule in May about whether Jeffries will be tried after reviewing the evidence of multiple specialists - experts, doctors and neurologists, including correctional physicians - who were cross-examined in court during the hearing.

'Unrestrained' Behavior

A trio of medical witnesses for the defense, maintain that Jeffries is cognitively impaired due to the after-effects of a traumatic brain injury, suspected Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries demonstrates socially inappropriate and socially inappropriate conduct, which is part of a set of dementia symptoms.

Reported incidents include Jeffries calling the prosecutor's professional psychologist a cunning bitch, complimenting her hair, informing another expert his clothing was poorly tailored, and describing his partner Smith as a dwarf, the court heard.

He was also taped in minute detail on about 20 jail conversations talking about his international travel plans 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 prison.

Prosecutors argue this indicates his recognition that he would go free if he was declared unfit and the charges were dismissed.

In contrast, the defence's witnesses disagree, arguing it instead points to that Jeffries has forgotten his conditions and the severity of the case.

"There wasn't the normal affect that I would expect someone to have who is confronting such severe charges," testified one doctor who reviewed Jeffries.

"Instead, his manner during the examination... was similar to we were having a chat at his home. There was no sign of alarm."

Diverging Neurological Diagnoses

Reports indicated there is data that Jeffries' decline started in 2013, when scans showed reduction in volume, which was accelerated by a accident in 2018.

Jeffries had been intoxicated at the time of the 2018 event and his history showed he continued drinking subsequent to being hospitalized, but an expert told the judge he did not think his typical drinking had a significant effect on his health.

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

Medical professionals from a prison hospital stated that Jeffries was able after assessing him over four months in the facility.

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

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

Jeffries, dressed in a business attire in the courtroom, was described as lighthearted and rather charismatic during meetings in prison, and was deliberately being provocative, sometimes using familiar terms.

They found Jeffries with slight deficits and said his performance on tests may have improved since 2023 from low or deficient to typical because of stopping drinking and improved treatment during his stay.

109 Recorded Conversations Present Concerns

Fundamental to establishing fitness is whether Jeffries comprehends the allegations against him, their consequences, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial