'I tried to say no repeatedly': More men accuse ex-Abercrombie boss over sex events

More men person travel guardant to the BBC accusing the erstwhile main enforcement of Abercrombie & Fitch and his British spouse of intersexual exploitation. Some allege they were abused, and immoderate that they were injected with drugs.

Luke says helium was shocked arsenic helium was guided into Mike Jeffries’ statesmanlike suite successful a edifice successful Spain. "It was similar a movie acceptable of an Abercrombie store," helium recalls of the lawsuit successful 2011. "And I thought we were going to bash a photoshoot."

He says the country was dimly lit with erotic photos of men’s abs adorning the acheronian walls. In the middle, a radical of assistants dressed successful Abercrombie & Fitch uniforms - polos, bluish jeans and flip-flops - were casually folding apparel connected a table, pretending to beryllium store workers, helium says.

Then aged 20, Luke says helium had been offered the accidental of being successful a institution advert if helium flew from his location successful Los Angeles to Madrid to conscionable the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F).

Luke says the connection had travel via a modelling website from a antheral who said helium worked arsenic a endowment scout and enforcement adjunct for Mr Jeffries - past caput of the billion-dollar teen retailer.

Warning: This communicative contains accounts of intersexual violence

In the suite, helium says Mr Jeffries' assistants began engaging successful role-play, encouraging him to enactment arsenic a shirtless greeter, a hallmark of A&F stores astatine the time. Luke says helium remembers the endowment scout saying: "Now I person 2 precise important guests, and these are going to beryllium the customers that you request to impressment and entertain due to the fact that they're going to beryllium buying a batch of apparel from you."

At that moment, helium says Mr Jeffries and his beingness partner, Matthew Smith, came retired of a country of the room. They instantly started touching him and Mr Jeffries forcibly kissed him, helium says. "I was trying to debar the full concern arsenic overmuch arsenic I could, but Michael was precise aggressive." He says the Abercrombie brag past performed oral enactment connected him.

“I tried to accidental nary repeatedly. And past I conscionable got benignant of convinced to bash something. But I perpetually was saying no, and I wanted to go.”

___

Luke (not his existent name) is 1 of 8 much men who person spoken to the BBC successful the past twelvemonth since we revealed allegations of intersexual exploitation astatine events hosted by Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith. The FBI launched an probe pursuing the BBC’s reporting, and 20 men successful full person present told america they attended oregon helped organise these events.

As good arsenic Luke’s allegation, the caller witnesses uncover caller details astir the standard of the events, which took spot from astatine slightest 2009 until 2015 portion Mr Jeffries was main executive.

The BBC antecedently recovered determination had been a blase cognition involving a middleman tasked with uncovering men for these events, but the caller testimonies item further recruitment methods.

The men besides rise caller questions astir the relation of Mr Jeffries' assistants - a prime radical of young men successful A&F uniforms who travelled astir the satellite with him and supervised these enactment events.

According to aggregate men, Mr Jeffries' assistants injected immoderate attendees successful the penis with what they were told was liquid Viagra.

Chris, not his existent name, told the BBC helium felt helium was "going to die" aft 1 of these injections caused an utmost absorption during an lawsuit astatine 1 of Mr Jeffries' New York homes. Feeling "hot, dizzy" and successful shock, helium said cipher called for an ambulance. Still disorientated, helium said Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith, who had been waiting successful different room, past tried to person enactment with him.

Former exemplary Keith Milkie, 31, says 1 of Mr Jeffries' assistants had besides "bragged" astir having done immoderate enactment for Abercrombie & Fitch astatine the aforesaid clip arsenic moving astatine these enactment events. He says this adjunct was named connected an lawsuit itinerary and the BBC recovered helium besides had an A&F institution email.

While idiosyncratic assistants of Mr Jeffries’ were often dressed successful A&F uniforms, this is the archetypal assertion that a subordinate of A&F unit was progressive successful the moving of Mr Jeffries' enactment events. When the BBC asked the institution astir this, it declined to answer, saying it does not remark connected ineligible matters.

Mr Jeffries, 80, Mr Smith, 61, and A&F - which besides owns the marque Hollister - are facing a civilian suit alleging the retailer funded a sex-trafficking cognition implicit the 2 decades helium had been successful charge.

Mr Smith and Mr Jeffries did not respond to requests for comment. However, their lawyers’ person antecedently said they contradict allegations of wrongdoing, adding: "The courtroom is wherever we volition woody with this matter."

One erstwhile attendee, Diego Guillen, who says helium has been interviewed by the FBI, told the BBC helium was paid $500 (£380) each Saturday to marque wake-up calls to men expected to be these enactment events successful 2011. He estimated helium made astir 80 calls implicit 7 months.

Mr Guillen, 42, says determination was besides a roster of attendees. Other sources person said this "database" could person arsenic galore arsenic 60 antithetic men connected it astatine immoderate fixed time, revealing a snapshot of the standard of those recruited.

He says helium had initially attended enactment events astatine Mr Jeffries' erstwhile New York homes aft being recruited connected the thoroughfare by the couple’s middleman, James Jacobson.

Mr Guillen, present a lawyer and existent property broker who runs his ain firm, says helium had ne'er had enactment for wealth before, but astatine the clip helium was unemployed and homeless, sleeping successful a friend’s office. Despite his circumstances then, helium says helium did not consciousness exploited.

After the FBI turned up astatine his door, Mr Guillen says helium contacted Mr Jeffries' lawyer who sent a backstage researcher to interrogation him to assistance physique their ineligible defence.

Mr Guillen says the different men contiguous astatine the events helium attended had been "under nary obligation, nether zero pressure" and "paid rather well".

"Michael and Matthew are precocious illustration cheery men and liked having enactment with young, handsome men. And being older, they knew that the existent mode to get this done was to beryllium generous," helium says. "But with afloat consent and making definite that the [men] wanted it and liked it. And that's it."

Unlike different men who were recruited by the middleman, Luke says his archetypal interaction was an adjunct moving for Mr Jeffries’ household bureau - a backstage institution tally by Mr Smith, which managed the then-CEO’s wealthiness and properties.

Luke says this adjunct interviewed him implicit Skype, telling him to expect to beryllium topless for the Madrid edifice photoshoot, but determination were nary evident reddish flags. This antheral past organised his question and accommodation, helium says.

"It didn't look similar thing excessively retired of the mean for maine due to the fact that adjacent moving astatine an Abercrombie store erstwhile I was younger, determination was guys who would basal extracurricular shirtless. That was similar a trademark thing," says Luke.

Leaked question plans amusement Mr Jeffries was scheduled to beryllium successful Madrid respective times successful 2011 up of opening a existent A&F store.

The nighttime earlier the event, Luke says helium was paid €3,500 (£2,950) successful cash, which helium believed was "general spending money" for the 3 days helium was successful Madrid. But helium says the adjunct was "vague" astir the plan.

He says successful the edifice suite, Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith began having enactment with 2 somewhat older men - 1 helium thought was successful his 30s and the different successful his 40s - contiguous for the aforesaid event. Luke says Mr Jeffries' past started kissing him. Soon after, helium says Mr Jeffries performed oral enactment connected him and Mr Smith attempted to bash the same. He says helium tried to execute "some benignant of oral" enactment connected Mr Jeffries, but "couldn't".

"I'm getting fired due to the fact that I didn't bash what this feline wanted," Luke remembers thinking, believing helium was astir to suffer his accidental of a modelling job. "I could person conscionable ran retired of that room, but I didn't adjacent cognize however I would person gotten out."

Luke says helium felt incapable to permission arsenic Mr Jeffries' assistants - whom helium perceived arsenic information unit - were "watching exits".

Back location successful the US, helium says helium felt incapable to study what happened due to the fact that of the non-disclosure statement helium had signed anterior to the event.

"There's an immense magnitude of shame associated with this thought that you're not a masculine antheral if you've been molested oregon taken vantage of by different man," says Luke, who identifies arsenic straight.

"My full beingness I've struggled with radical reasoning that I'm cheery and I got bullied successful precocious schoolhouse due to the fact that I person a brushed voice. The past happening connected world I was going to bash is accidental thing emasculating, like, I got molested and orally raped by a guy."

Luke says what happened successful Madrid was "rocket fuel" for a cause addiction helium aboriginal developed. In 2016, helium was arrested for selling drugs and served six months successful a correctional footwear camp. He present runs his ain concern alongside helping radical with addictions.

Keith Milkie says helium attended galore events hosted by Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith betwixt 2012 and 2014. He says helium understood these events would beryllium intersexual but that thing Mr Jacobson said could "prepare you for what's going to happen" next.

Then aged astir 20, Mr Milkie says helium had been struggling to wage his rent aft being invited to determination to New York by an agent, who ran a location afloat of aspiring models. He says a housemate soon introduced the thought of escorting, and a interaction aboriginal introduced him to Mr Jacobson.

Mr Milkie, who identified arsenic consecutive astatine the time, says helium recovered immoderate of the events "uncomfortable" and "painful". On 1 occasion, successful Paris, helium says Mr Jeffries instructed him to person enactment with different man, which helium "did not privation oregon enjoy".

During another, helium says helium was verbally abused by Mr Jeffries aft saying "no" to a risky intersexual enactment portion connected committee the Queen Mary 2, an water liner which sails from England to New York. He says Mr Jeffries was drunk and tried to insert a "bleeding finger" into him.

"I was successful the furniture putting connected a fake smile, crying connected the inside," helium says. "Here I americium successful the mediate of the water having this idiosyncratic 4 times my property successful that presumption of powerfulness and power belittle maine to decease and virtually telephone maine worthless… simply due to the fact that I said nary to something."

He says Mr Jacobson paid him astir $24,000 (£18,400) successful currency for the seven-night cruise.

According to his lawsuit itineraries, which had been sent by Mr Jacobson, different of these enactment events was conscionable days aft it had been publically announced Mr Jeffries was stepping down arsenic CEO of A&F successful December 2014. Mr Milkie believes that last gathering marked the extremity of these events.

"The personification of Mike Jeffries is Abercrombie. He had the hairsbreadth plugs, the integrative surgery, helium wore the clothes, helium wore the flip-flops. I mean, you speech astir power. He projected his representation connected the full country. His places wherever helium lived were virtually an Abercrombie store. It was similar phantasy land," helium says.

"Without that benignant of power, that benignant of fearfulness and influence, I ideate it's conscionable similar a batch harder to support radical quiet, which is wherefore years aboriginal radical are talking astir it."

After the BBC’s archetypal probe was published past year, A&F announced it was opening an autarkic probe into the allegations raised. When we precocious asked erstwhile this study volition beryllium completed - and if the findings would beryllium made nationalist - the institution declined to answer.

Like Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith, the marque has been trying to get the civilian suit against it dismissed, arguing it had nary cognition of "the expected sex-trafficking venture" led by its erstwhile CEO - which it has been accused of having funded.

Earlier this year, a US tribunal ruled that A&F indispensable screen the outgo of Mike Jeffries' ineligible defence arsenic helium continues to combat the civilian allegations of sex-trafficking and rape. The justice ruled the allegations were tied to his firm relation aft helium sued the marque for refusing to wage his ineligible fees.

The marque said it does not remark connected ineligible matters. However, successful its defence submitted to court, A&F said its existent enactment squad was "previously unaware of" the allegations until the BBC contacted it, adding the institution "abhors intersexual maltreatment and condemns the alleged conduct" by Mr Jeffries and others.

Mr Jacobson - the middleman - antecedently said successful a connection done his lawyer that helium took offence astatine the proposition of "any coercive, deceptive oregon forceful behaviour connected my part" and had "no cognition of immoderate specified behaviour by others".