Ex-Abercrombie & Fitch CEO’s Partner Matthew Smith Pleads Not Guilty to Sex Trafficking
Matthew Smith, partner of former Abercrombie & Fitch chief executive officer Mike Jeffries, on Tuesday pleaded not guilty in their sex trafficking case and was released on a $10 million bond.
Smith, 61, had been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center, a federal jail in Brooklyn, since Nov. 19. He was arrested on Oct. 22. Jeffries and James Jacobson, who is alleged to have acted as a middleman in an alleged international operation, were also arrested at that time and were later released. During their arraignment hearings last month, Jeffries and Jacobson each pleaded not guilty to one count of sex trafficking and 15 counts of interstate prostitution. Jeffries had also been released on a $10 million bond and Jacobson had been released on a $500,000 bond.
More from WWD
The three men allegedly were part of a sexual trafficking and prostitution enterprise that lasted at least from the end of 2008 until early 2015. Jeffries was said to have spent “millions of dollars on a massive infrastructure” to support it and “hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash for commercial sex,” as well as money for travel, hotel rooms and a security company, according to U.S. attorney of the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace. Fifteen John Does are named in the indictment, and a few of them attended Jeffries’ and Jacobson’s arraignments in late October in Central Islip, N.Y.
With a U.K. passport, Smith was considered to be a flight risk by authorities including by Peace, who unsealed the indictment against all three men in late October. Smith appeared smiling in a black puffer jacket, gray button-down shirt, white jeans and black loafers without socks as he exited the federal courthouse in Central Islip, N.Y. Tuesday afternoon.
The suretors on Smith’s $10 million bond include Jeffries, Jeffries’ wife Susan, son Andrew and daughter-in-law Annabel, and Diane Chang and Patrick Wiesel. Chang, who could not be reached immediately Tuesday, is a former executive vice president of sourcing at Abercrombie & Fitch. The conditions of Smith’s release included home detention with GPS monitoring with permission to leave for medical appointments, meetings with lawyers, religious services and to accompany Jeffries to medical appointments. His release was tied to securing the bond by three homes, his resignation as a trustee of the Michael S. Jeffries Revocable Trust and to agree that the Jeffries Trust will operate under such restrictions as limiting withdrawals to $125,000 per month to cover necessary overhead expenses.
Representatives for Smith’s attorney Joseph Nascimento of Ross, Amsel, Raben and Nascimento did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Jeffries’ attorney Brian Bieber of Gray Robinson LLC had not responded immediately to a request for comment. An attorney for the John Does in the case, Brad Edwards of Edwards Henderson, said Tuesday that Smith’s release does not concern him. “He posted a sizable bond to hopefully ensure he does not abscond. The interesting aspect, of course, is that Diane Chang served as one of the sureties, further proving the points we made in our complaint about Abercrombie’s (apparently continued) support for the actions of Jeffries and Smith,” he said.
A spokesperson for Abercrombie & Fitch could not be reached immediately for comment Tuesday evening.
Jacobson was alleged to have “try-outs” for men and would personally approve those who would be flown to Jeffries’ and Smith’s homes in New York City and the Hamptons, as well as hotels in Italy, France, Morocco and St. Barths, among other locales, for “the purpose of attending events to engage in commercial sex,” according to Peace.
Smith, Jeffries and Jacobson are due back at the Central Islip federal courthouse on Dec. 10.
Best of WWD
Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Solve the daily Crossword
