How my investigation led to sex-trafficking charges against my ex-boss

In federal court in New York, for the first time I came face to face with Mike Jeffries – the billionaire ex-fashion executive I spent three years investigating for the BBC. He's staring straight at me, lips pursed, and chin up, as he sits in front of the judge.

Because of my reporting, he was was arrested this week by the FBI and has been charged with running a global sex trafficking and prostitution business with his British partner, Matthew Smith, and among them James Jacobson.

The authorities did after hearing my podcast series, Abercrombie Boyswhere he found evidence that Mr Jeffries, 80, and Mr Smith, 61, it was in the middle of a complex global operation involving a network of recruiters with a middle man spying on young men for sex.

As the CEO of the young retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries was described to me as a mysterious and superstitious genius who, with his highlighted hair and penchant for plastic surgery, personified the new All-American brand he created.

But now, her hair white, her fillers melted, and wearing an ankle monitor – she seemed to be the shadow of a mogul who allegedly used her power and influence while in charge of abusing vulnerable models.

US prosecutors say he and other suspects used force, fraud and coerced men into violent and exploitative sexual acts from at least 2008-2015. If convicted, they face life in prison.

Shoulders slumped, Mr Jeffries' face was blank as his lawyer pleaded not guilty. His accomplice Matthew Smith – a UK citizen – is yet to appear in court. Authorities consider him a flight risk and he is currently being held pending trial.

Warning: This story contains descriptions of sexual acts

When I think about how my own investigation started, in January 2021, I never thought it would lead to this moment.

During this pandemic, I was researching the fashion industry when I came across a private Instagram comment written by a former model named Barrett Pall.

He was part of a group that discussed how they felt that male abuse was being ignored. “We saw it happen with #MeToo, what about #UsToo?” another wrote.

We immediately got on the phone. After an hour of talking, he said he felt he could trust me with a secret he had never revealed before.

“It's probably the worst experience I've ever had,” he told me. “Someone came to shave me, like my whole body, because they like boys like that.”

In 2011, the then 22-year-old Barrett said he was sent by an older model, who was a close friend, to meet a mysterious person who described him as having a missing nose covered in snake skin.

She said the man – who she later identified through phone and asset records as James Jacobson – made her perform a sexual act “as an experiment” before sending her to Mike Jeffries, the former CEO and chairman of Abercrombie & Fitch, and a British colleague. .

Barrett said the two have been throwing elaborate sex parties at their Hamptons home for years. He said the one he attended was driven by attendants in Abercrombie polos and flip-flops, carrying silver plates of alcohol, poppers and lube.

What Barrett told me sparked my first two-year investigation. I traveled across America, from the state of Ohio to the desert of Palm Springs, tracking down the affected men and dealing with those involved – including the man in the middle.

Usually when I investigate, I can find a few loose threads to pull by searching newspaper archives, court records or social media. But there was nothing public about these allegations.

So I used the old-school method, gathering my own leads by word of mouth, knocking on doors, and sending handwritten letters to potential customers. I tracked down and contacted hundreds of people including former Abercrombie & Fitch models and former employees of Mr. Jeffries, gaining their trust within months.

Then, great success.

Barrett Pall had an old iPad that wouldn't turn on – but we fixed it. With that, I got an itinerary and a plane ticket confirming the event he was attending in the Hamptons. It was sent by executive producer James Jacobson and had the initials and numbers of others involved.

Later I recovered more than a dozen of these itineraries from different sources, finally providing concrete clues. But it took me months to figure out their roles, not wanting to persuade the wrong person while I was still on the road gathering evidence.

Many men were wary of speaking. Two accused me of being a “spy” for Mike Jeffries – at first he was afraid of his “money and power”. I, too, became more and more confused after I started dealing with hundreds of hacking attempts each day from unknown IP addresses.

We were right to be careful. In their lawsuit, unsealed Tuesday, prosecutors said Mike Jeffries hired a full-time security firm to oversee non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), conduct background checks, and monitor and intimidate anyone who threatened to disclose them.

I have spoken to more than 20 men who attended or helped organize these events for Mr Jeffries and his colleague Matthew Smith. Others like Luke, an aspiring model who told me he was recruited for an A&F photoshoot, say they were misled and not told they were sexually involved.

How could this work be hidden for so long?

The answer I came up with is that the shame some men feel when talking about same-sex abuse is silenced like any NDA. Some told me they felt suicidal, others completely broken. In many cases, I was the first person they confided in.

One man, whom I will call Alex, broke down when he told me that he believed he had been drugged and raped by an unknown person at a luxury party in Marrakesh where a large number of men had flown in.

He believed that this led to him contracting HIV. “Jeffries was the king,” he told me at the time. “Without him, none of this would have happened.”

Before publication, I worked with BBC Panorama to check my evidence carefully. This involved talking to industry insiders – including James Jacobson.

When podcaster Ruth Evans and I knocked on her door one hot day in rural Wisconsin in August 2023, she slumped down her stairs, put her head in her hands and swore. He asked me for a feast. “Leave my name and I will tell you everything,” he said.

Mr. Jacobson repeated this request several times the next day, when he agreed to meet for coffee. We talked for two hours.

Sometimes it was weird – he liked my accent, commented on my British accent and seemed to support me – calling me “dear”. He is a former actor and at one point he put in a bunch of words, and pretended to be wearing a dress, trying to convince me that he could do an anonymous interview.

But he was also charismatic, joking about his missing nose, saying the only job he could get these days was as a Bond villain. Ultimately, Mr Jacobson said he was “doing his job” and had not spoken to Jeffries or Smith since 2015.

In the end, he didn't get his deal, in court he sat holding his head and his lawyer pleaded not guilty.

After we published it in October 2023, some of the men in the story took legal action against Mike Jeffries, Matthew Smith and Abercrombie & Fitch, accusing them of rape, assault and sex trafficking. All deny wrongdoing. The lawsuit claims that more than 100 men may have been abused during Jeffries' tenure.

Sources have also started contacting me saying that they have been contacted by the law enforcement.

We were not involved in the FBI's investigation – which was completely independent of mine. Protecting sources is important to my work. So, it can be men's choice to speak.

Looking back, there were times when I thought about giving up. I first faced the end after death. But the more I heard, the more I felt a responsibility to bring this up in the first place and hold those involved accountable.

More than two years since our first conversation, I asked Barrett Pall why he decided to talk to me.

He started crying and said: “My gut tells me to trust him.” Tell him your story. And maybe, just maybe, someone will listen.”

Announcing the charges, US attorney Breon Peace said: “For anyone who thinks they can exploit and coerce others by using a system called 'casting couch', this case should be a warning.” Be prepared to trade that sofa for a bed in a state prison. “