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Ex- the fashion retailer chief executive Mike Jeffries was recorded informing his British partner how they'd be screwed and in deep trouble if he was declared able to face trial on trafficking accusations in the coming months, a US district court has learned.

The recordings were among more than 100 phone calls between the ex-fashion boss and Matthew Smith cited during a lengthy legal competency session on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' legal team argue that he is suffering with cognitive decline and the onset of Alzheimer's and is not competent to stand trial alongside his partner and their alleged facilitator in October.

However, prosecutors argue their health professionals concluded his health has stabilized and that the recordings show he is extremely fixated on being declared incompetent.

In other tapes, Jeffries states he is wishing for a positive result, describing being deemed competent as a calamity, and tells a doctor: you better declare me incompetent, the judge learned.

Court Process and Psychiatric Evidence

The conversations were made last year while he was being held for several months in a mental health unit at a federal prison in North Carolina to assess if he could restore his faculties.

The 81-year-old had previously been found mentally incompetent in May but correctional authorities then announced in December that he was fit for trial following his evaluation.

Government attorneys informed the court Jeffries frequently griped about incarceration and was caught on tape explaining to Smith how horrible prison was, remarking: that's why we must make this work.

Context

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their alleged intermediary James Jacobson, 73, were indicted with operating a international human trafficking and prostitution operation in October 2024.

They have denied the charges, which could result in a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Their arrests came after an report that uncovered the three had been at the heart of a elaborate network sourcing men for sex around the world while Jeffries was the head of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will face trial after reviewing the evidence of multiple specialists - psychologists, specialists and medical experts, including prison doctors - who were questioned in proceedings recently.

'Unrestrained' Behavior

Three defense witnesses, testify that Jeffries is cognitively impaired due to the residual effects of a traumatic brain injury, suspected dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries shows socially inappropriate and socially inappropriate behaviour, which is part of a set of symptoms.

Examples are Jeffries calling the prosecution's professional psychologist a cunning bitch, remarking on her hair, informing another expert his clothing was badly made, and referring to his partner Smith as a midget, according to testimony.

He was also taped in great detail on approximately 20 prison calls discussing his international travel plans for the next few months, even though having been on house arrest since 2024.

"I don't want to go on trips without you," Jeffries was recorded telling Smith from jail.

Prosecutors argue this shows his recognition that he would regain his freedom if he was ruled incompetent and the case were dropped.

However, the defence's expert witnesses disagree, saying it instead highlights that Jeffries fails to recall his conditions and the gravity of the situation.

"There wasn't the normal reaction that I would anticipate someone to have who is confronting such severe allegations," stated one forensic psychiatrist who assessed Jeffries.

"Rather, his behavior throughout the assessment... was as if we were having lunch at his club. There was no indication of anxiety."

Diverging Medical Assessments

Testimony indicated there is evidence that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration commenced in 2013, when scans showed brain shrinkage, which was accelerated by a incident in 2018.

Jeffries had been drinking alcohol at the time of the 2018 fall and his records showed he kept on drinking after being hospitalized, but an expert told the judge he did not think his overall drinking had a major impact on his condition.

After the fall, Jeffries became psychotic, and began having visions, with one event in 2019 where he was discovered in his underwear, incapacitated, in a neighbor's yard.

Experts from a treatment facility stated that Jeffries was competent after evaluating him over four months in custody.

They say his cognitive abilities were not consistent with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be definitively confirmed until an autopsy could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has experienced... he still is brighter and more able mentally than probably 95% of the inmates that we assess for fitness," said one doctor.

Jeffries, dressed in a business attire in the court, was described as lighthearted and quite personable during evaluations in prison, and was intentionally being provocative, at times using familiar address.

They diagnosed Jeffries with slight deficits and suggested his results may have improved since 2023 from low or impaired to average because of stopping drinking and improved treatment during his evaluation.

109 Jail Recordings Prompt Issues

Central to determining fitness is whether Jeffries comprehends the charges against him, their penalties, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial