Michael Jeffries, the former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, was arrested Tuesday in Florida on sex trafficking charges.
The former CEO and his partner, Matthew Smith, were arrested in the morning and are expected to appear in federal court in West Palm Beach later in the day.
Mr Jeffries, who led the once-iconic fashion retailer from 1992 to 2014, was detained alongside Mr Smith. Their associate, James Jacobson, was also detained in Wisconsin in connection with the case.
According to NBC, the indictment claims that Messrs Jeffries, Smith and Jacobson ran an “international sex trafficking and prostitution operation” involving “sex events” in six countries, including England, France, and the United States.
It alleges that the men used “coercive, fraudulent, and deceptive tactics” to recruit, hire, transport, and pay individuals for commercial sex.
Additionally, the indictment states that they employed a selected staff to “facilitate and supervise” these sex events.
Mr Jacobson is expected to appear in the federal court in St. Paul, Minnesota, according to John Marzulli, spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York, which is leading the case.
Prosecutors have not yet disclosed the full extent of the charges or whether others may be implicated.
Mr Jeffries’s attorney, Brian Bieber, told NBC, “We will respond in detail to the allegations after the indictment is unsealed, and when appropriate, but plan to do so in the courthouse, not the media.”
The arrest follows a year-long investigation by the BBC, spotlighting Mr Jeffries’ alleged actions during his reign at Abercrombie.
The investigation uncovered accusations that Messrs Jeffries and Smith lured men to events across the globe, promising them modelling opportunities with the fashion brand, only for the men to be sexually exploited at these gatherings.
The charges against Mr Jeffries mark a significant fall from grace for the once-powerful retail executive, whose tenure at Abercrombie & Fitch saw the brand dominate the youth fashion market throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s.
This scandal follows a series of controversies surrounding Abercrombie & Fitch over the years, including accusations of discriminatory hiring practices, body shaming, and sexualisation in its advertising.
Mr Jeffries, with his signature focus on exclusivity and elitism, had long been a polarising figure in the fashion world, and now his reputation faces further potentially irreparable damage.
