Abercrombie & Fitch halts payments to former CEO amid allegations of sex trafficking

Abercrombie & Fitch has announced that it will no longer be providing additional retirement income to its former CEO, Mike Jeffries, amidst allegations of sex trafficking. Jeffries had been receiving yearly bonus payments totaling around $1 million in addition to his standard pension. The BBC uncovered claims of exploitation by young men recruited for sex events during Jeffries' tenure, and a lawsuit alleged that the retailer funded a sex-trafficking operation. Abercrombie & Fitch has now suspended these extra retirement payments to Jeffries. A BBC investigation found evidence of a highly organized network that used a middleman to recruit men for events around the world involving Jeffries and his British partner Matthew Smith. Several attendees of these events alleged that they were exploited or abused. The company has been accused in a civil lawsuit of funding a "criminal enterprise" led by Jeffries and Smith, in which more than 100 men were sexually abused. Abercrombie & Fitch stated that it does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings, and Jeffries and Smith have declined to provide a response. Jeffries is considered the driving force behind Abercrombie & Fitch's transformation into a successful retailer targeting teenagers. He left the company in 2014 with a retirement package worth approximately $25 million. The supplemental retirement plan payments to Jeffries have been suspended by A&F, but the company cannot provide further details due to pending litigation. The brand has hired an external law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations. A&F's current executive leadership team and board of directors stated that they were unaware of the allegations and have a zero-tolerance policy for abuse, harassment, and discrimination.