ike Jeffries, the previous long-term CEO of Abercrombie and Fitch, was criminally accused on Tuesday of sex dealing and prostitution including many men.
The 16-count prosecution was revealed by government examiners in Brooklyn 10 years after Jeffries left the retailer he incorporated more than 22 years into a famous dress brand known for physically charged showcasing.
It came as a result of a BBC investigation and a proposed class action lawsuit in which Jeffries was accused of luring young men around the world to be sexually abused by offering them modeling jobs.
Lawyer Breon Harmony, whose office won a conviction and 30-year jail term for the vocalist R Kelly for sex dealing, said influential individuals have for a really long time physically manhandled youngsters who longed for vocations in style and diversion.
“This case should serve as a warning to anyone who believes they can exploit and coerce others using the so-called casting couch system: plan to exchange that love seat for a bed government jail,” Harmony said at a public interview.
The respondents incorporate Jeffries, 80, his accomplice Matthew Smith, 61, and James Jacobson, 71, who supposedly enlisted people for them. Each was accused of one count of sex dealing and 15 counts of highway prostitution connected with 15 anonymous casualties somewhere in the range of 2008 and 2015.
The charges of sex trafficking carry mandatory minimum sentences of 15 years in prison if they are found guilty. The charges of interstate prostitution carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
In isolated trials, Jeffries and Jacobson were requested delivered on separate obligations of $10 million and $500,000.
A representative for Harmony said they are supposed to enter formal requests on Friday evening in the Focal Islip, New York government court. The prosecution wants both men confined at home.
At his court hearing, it was ordered that Smith, who is British and American, be detained. Due to the possibility of fleeing, the prosecution wants him imprisoned pending trial.
Jeffries’ legal advisor Brian Bieber and Smith’s attorneys didn’t promptly answer demands for input after the hearings. Jacobson’s attorney, Jeremy Schneider, declined to comment.
Additionally, Abercrombie declined to comment. It was not blamed for bad behavior, and Harmony said there was no proof the supposed violations occurred on organization property.
Prosecutors claimed that Jeffries and Smith paid for dozens of men to meet them for sex at their Manhattan and Long Island, New York, homes, as well as hotels in England, France, Italy, Morocco, and St. Barts.
Depending on their abundant resources and Jeffries’ power at Abercrombie, Jeffries and Smith were “devoted to satisfying their sexual cravings and guaranteeing that their global sex dealing and prostitution business was kept mystery, subsequently keeping up with Jeffries’ strong standing,” the prosecution said.
According to the prosecution, Jacobson frequently held “tryouts,” during which male recruits as young as 19 would engage in sexual activity with him before being referred to Jeffries and Smith.
They likewise said the plan included muscle relaxants known as “poppers” and props, for example, huge sex toys and high-compelled bowel purges.
If men told anyone, including friends and family, what was going on, they had to sign non-disclosure agreements and pay damages.
The named plaintiff in the proposed class action, David Bradberry, who participated in the BBC investigation, accused Abercrombie of paying off individuals who claimed that Jeffries abused or harassed them sexually.
On October 4, Abercrombie, Jeffries, and Smith requested that the case be dismissed by a federal judge.
The business in New Albany, Ohio, stated that it was implausible to believe it had anything to do with the allegations against Jeffries and that it had been “shocked and appalled” by them.
Jeffries drove Abercrombie from 1992 to 2014, spreading the word about it a fruitful high schooler clothing creator for cologne-filled stores and promotions including semi-bare models.
Investors and analysts criticized him for failing to keep up with the shifting tastes of teen shoppers, and he resigned.
