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Former the fashion retailer top executive Mike Jeffries was heard on tape telling his UK-based partner that they were finished and in grave danger if he was deemed able to stand trial on human trafficking accusations later this year, a US district court has been told.

The taped conversations were included in more than 100 recorded calls between the former retail executive and Matthew Smith referred to during a multi-day fitness to stand trial hearing this week on Long Island.

Jeffries' lawyers assert that he is coping with cognitive decline and the onset of the disease and is not competent to face trial next to his partner and their accused middleman in October.

In contrast, the prosecution contend their medical experts found his health has improved and that the calls reveal he is remarkably focused on being found not competent.

In additional audio clips, Jeffries says he is hoping for a favorable ruling, labeling being found fit as a disaster, and tells a medical professional: you better find me incompetent, the Central Islip court was told.

Legal Hearings and Medical Testimony

The calls were made in the past year while he was being treated for four months in a psychiatric facility at a US prison in North Carolina to assess if he could restore competency.

The elderly defendant had previously been found not competent last May but facility staff then announced in December that he was fit for proceedings after his treatment period.

Prosecutors advised the court Jeffries repeatedly griped about life in jail and was heard describing to Smith how horrible jail was, adding: that's why we must succeed.

Background

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

They have entered not guilty pleas the accusations, which could result in a potential penalty of life imprisonment.

Their being taken into custody came after an report that uncovered the three had been at the heart of a elaborate scheme scouting young men for sex internationally while Jeffries was the head of Abercrombie & Fitch.

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

'Inappropriate' Behavior

A trio of defence experts, argue that Jeffries is legally unfit due to the after-effects of a brain trauma, suspected dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

They said under oath that Jeffries exhibits disinhibited and off-color conduct, which is symptomatic of a set of dementia symptoms.

Instances include Jeffries referring to the prosecutor's expert witness a cunning bitch, remarking on her hair, informing another expert his clothing was poorly tailored, and referring to his partner Smith as a derogatory term, the court heard.

He was also heard in minute detail on approximately 20 jail conversations planning his trips abroad for the coming months, despite having been on house arrest since 2024.

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

The prosecution argue this demonstrates his recognition that he would be released if he was ruled unfit and the charges were dropped.

However, the defense's medical experts counter, arguing it instead underscores that Jeffries fails to recall his legal restrictions and the severity of the case.

"I didn't see the normal emotional response that I would anticipate someone to have who is up against such serious charges," stated one forensic psychiatrist who reviewed Jeffries.

"Instead, his demeanor throughout the examination... was as if we were having a meal at his club. There was no sense of anxiety."

Opposing Medical Assessments

Testimony indicated there is evidence that Jeffries' decline commenced in 2013, when tests showed brain shrinkage, which was exacerbated by a fall in 2018.

Jeffries had been consuming alcohol at the moment of the 2018 fall and his records showed he continued drinking subsequent to being treated, but an expert told the judge he did not think his general drinking had a major impact on his health.

In the wake of the fall, Jeffries became psychotic, and started seeing things, with one incident in 2019 where he was located in his underwear, immobile, in a nearby property.

Medical professionals from a prison hospital said that Jeffries was competent after assessing him over four months in the facility.

They say his cognitive abilities did not align with Alzheimer's disease, which the court heard could not be absolutely determined until an examination could be performed.

"Even given the declines that Mr Jeffries has suffered... he still is more capable and more able cognitively than probably 95% of the inmates that we test for competency," said one neuropsychologist.

Jeffries, wearing a suit and tie in the court, was reported to be cheerful and rather charismatic during meetings in the facility, and was purposely testing the limits, at times using disrespectful language.

They assessed Jeffries with slight deficits and said his results may have improved since 2023 from borderline or deficient to typical because of abstinence from alcohol and more consistent treatment during his stay.

109 Prison Calls Present Issues

Central to assessing competency is whether Jeffries grasps the charges against him, their implications, the {legal proceedings|court process|trial