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One-time the fashion retailer chief executive Mike Jeffries was taped informing his UK-based partner that they were in serious trouble and in grave danger if he was declared able to stand trial on trafficking allegations in the coming months, a federal court in NY has been told.

The recordings were included in in excess of 100 recorded calls between the ex-fashion boss and Matthew Smith cited during a multi-day fitness to stand trial hearing on Long Island on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers assert that he is battling cognitive decline and late onset of Alzheimer's and is incapable to face trial together with his partner and their purported middleman in October.

Nevertheless, prosecutors contend their medical experts found his condition has gotten better and that the conversations demonstrate he is remarkably focused on being found unfit.

In further audio clips, Jeffries says he is wishing for a positive result, labeling being ruled able as a catastrophe, and instructs a medical professional: you had better find me incompetent, the court heard.

Legal Process and Medical Evidence

The conversations were recorded in the past year while he was being treated for a period of months in a treatment center at a US prison in North Carolina to determine if he could recover fitness.

The octogenarian had previously been found mentally incompetent in May but prison officials then announced in December that he was able for proceedings subsequent to his hospital stay.

The prosecution told the judge Jeffries frequently protested incarceration and was caught on tape explaining to Smith how awful incarceration was, adding: that's why we got to make this work.

Background

Jeffries, his partner Smith, 62, and their purported go-between James Jacobson, 73, were accused with running a worldwide trafficking and prostitution operation in October 2024.

They have entered not guilty pleas the charges, which have a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Their being taken into custody followed an report that revealed the trio had been at the core of a elaborate scheme sourcing men for sex internationally while Jeffries was chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch.

Presiding Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury will make a determination in May about whether Jeffries will stand trial after considering the evidence of six experts - forensic psychologists, psychiatrists and medical experts, including facility doctors - who were cross-examined in court during the hearing.

'Disinhibited' Conduct

A trio of medical witnesses for the defense, argue that Jeffries is mentally incompetent due to the after-effects of a brain trauma, likely Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They testified that Jeffries shows unfiltered and socially inappropriate behaviour, which is symptomatic of a range of dementia symptoms.

Instances include Jeffries referring to the prosecutor's professional psychologist a derogatory term, praising her hair, informing another expert his clothing was badly made, and referring to his partner Smith as a derogatory term, according to testimony.

He was also heard in great detail on approximately 20 prison calls planning his trips abroad for the coming months, despite having been on restricted movement since 2024.

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

The prosecution argue this demonstrates his understanding that he would regain his freedom if he was found unfit and the charges were dropped.

In contrast, the defense's medical experts disagree, stating it instead points to that Jeffries fails to recall his legal restrictions and the severity of the case.

"He lacked the appropriate affect that I would expect someone to have who is facing such serious allegations," said one doctor who evaluated Jeffries.

"Instead, his demeanor during the evaluation... was almost like we were having a chat at his club. There was no sense of alarm."

Diverging Psychiatric Assessments

Testimony indicated there is data that Jeffries' cognitive deterioration began in 2013, when imaging showed brain shrinkage, which was exacerbated by a incident in 2018.

Jeffries had been consuming alcohol at the time of the 2018 fall and his medical records showed he kept on drinking after being hospitalised, but an expert told the judge he did not think his overall intake had a decisive influence on his health.

In the wake of the fall, Jeffries suffered a psychotic break, and began seeing things, with one event in 2019 where he was located in his underclothes, unable to move, in a neighbor's yard.

Doctors from a treatment facility testified that Jeffries was able after assessing him over several months in the facility.

They contend his mental faculties 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 reduction that Mr Jeffries has undergone... he still is more capable and more functioning cognitively than probably 95% of the patients that we assess for competency," testified one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, wearing a business attire in the court, was reported to be lighthearted and quite charismatic during meetings in prison, and was intentionally being provocative, sometimes using familiar address.

They found Jeffries with minor cognitive impairments and suggested his performance on tests may have improved since 2023 from borderline or impaired to average because of stopping drinking and better medication management during his confinement.

109 Prison Calls Prompt Issues

Fundamental to assessing competency is whether Jeffries understands the charges against him, their penalties, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial