Federal prison officials have determined that Michael Jeffries, the 81-year-old former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, is fit to stand trial on sex trafficking and interstate prostitution charges. This decision comes after Jeffries was hospitalized with diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy body dementia, and a traumatic brain injury in May. However, Blake Lott, the acting warden at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina, stated in a letter to the court that Jeffries is "now competent to stand trial." Prosecutors further noted that medical experts, including a neuropsychologist and psychologist, have found him competent, asserting that he can understand the proceedings and assist in his defense.
Jeffries had been declared "mentally incompetent" by a court in May, with medical professionals concluding his cognitive issues were "progressive and incurable." He was discharged from FMC-Butner in late November. During a competency hearing, Dr. Tracy O'Connor Pennuto, a neuropsychologist from FMC-Butner, testified that Jeffries showed only mild impairment, not the severe memory loss associated with Alzheimer's, and performed "better than probably 90% of the patients that we assess for competency." She suggested his cognitive testing scores improved due to abstinence from alcohol and better medication management during his four-month stay.
Jeffries was arrested and charged last October along with his British partner, Matthew Smith, 61, and alleged middleman, James Jacobson, 72. All three deny the allegations of running an international sex-trafficking and prostitution business from at least 2008-2015, preying on vulnerable men. A final competency hearing is scheduled for early 2026, with U.S. District Judge Nusrat Choudhury presiding, and a trial date for all three defendants has been set for October 26, 2026, contingent on Jeffries being deemed fit to stand trial.
Defense lawyers for Jeffries had argued his cognitive impairment, resulting from Alzheimer's and Lewy body dementia, rendered him unfit for trial. However, prosecutors highlighted recordings of phone calls between Jeffries and Smith where Jeffries expressed being "screwed" and in "big trouble" if found fit for trial, and stating he was "hoping for a good outcome" and that being found fit would be a "disaster." Prosecutors argued these calls indicate Jeffries was "incredibly focused" on being found incompetent. In March, a court ruled that Abercrombie & Fitch must cover Jeffries' criminal defense costs, a figure expected to be in the millions, due to an indemnification agreement from his 2014 departure.
