Former Abercrombie C.E.O. Is Charged With Running Sex-Trafficking Ring
Michael S. Jeffries, the former longtime chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch, was indicted on Tuesday on charges of running an international sex-trafficking scheme during several years of his tenure at the company.
Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn accused Mr. Jeffries, who ran the clothing retailer from 1992 to 2014, of using force, fraud and coercion to lure dozens of men to events around the world, where they were sexually exploited by Mr.
Jeffries and his romantic partner. The indictment, which includes accusations from 15 people who said they had been coerced into sex acts, echoes allegations first unearthed last year by a BBC investigation and a class-action lawsuit accusing Mr.
Jeffries of using the prospect of modeling jobs at Abercrombie to exploit and abuse them. Mr. Jeffries, 80, and his partner, Matthew Smith, 61, were arrested in Florida on Tuesday morning, said John Marzulli, a spokesman for the U.S.
