The former boss of the American fashion group Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries, has been charged in New York with serious sex crimes against aspiring models. In total, the 80-year-old is accused of abusing at least fifteen people. The crimes are said to have taken place between 2008 and 2015. His ex-partner and another person are also charged.
Just over a year ago, several men accused Jeffries and his partner of sexually exploiting them at events. According to media reports, the couple used an intermediary to find young men for themselves. Jeffries left the group in 2014. The now 80-year-old created a controversial image in the past with statements that he only wanted ‘cool, good-looking people’ as customers.
Men from all over the world were selected. Jeffries’ partner then arranged for them to be flown with the company boss to events, for example to New York City or to hotels around the world – including England, France, Italy or Morocco. “They led the men to believe that participating in these sex events could lead to modeling opportunities at Abercrombie or otherwise benefit their careers,” District Attorney Breon Peace said Tuesday.
The alleged victims signed appropriate confidentiality agreements before the events. Personal items such as smartphones also had to be handed in. “To maintain the secrecy of these events, the defendants led the men to believe that failure to comply with requests to perform certain sexual acts during the events could harm their careers,” the prosecutor continued.
Jeffries released after posting bail
More than once there was “invasive sexual and violent contact with body parts and other objects” without consent. “We have extensive evidence. We have travel data, we have financial data, we have statements from victims and other witnesses. “So we believe we have a lot of evidence to support the prosecution in this case,” Peace said.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, Jeffries is released on bail of ten million dollars (about 9.24 million euros) after a short arrest.
Source: Krone
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