The ex-CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch and his British partner face allegations of exploitation from men recruited for sex events they hosted around the world.

A BBC investigation found a highly organised network used a middleman to find young men for the events with Mike Jeffries and Matthew Smith.

Eight men told the BBC they attended these events, some of whom alleged they were exploited or abused.

The BBC has now uncovered allegations that the fashion mogul exploited young adult men for sex at events he hosted in his New York residences and luxurious hotels around the world, including in London, Paris, Venice, and Marrakesh.

As part of a two-year investigation, the BBC has spoken to 12 men who described attending or organising events involving sex acts run for Mr Jeffries, 79, and his British partner Mr Smith, 60, between 2009 and 2015.

The eight men who attended the events said they were recruited by a middleman, who they described as having a missing nose covered with a snakeskin patch. The BBC has identified him as James Jacobson.

Men who attended these events told the BBC Mike Jeffries and Matthew Smith would engage in sexual activity with about four men or "direct" them to have sex with each other. Afterwards, the men said staff at the event handed them envelopes filled with thousands of dollars in cash.

Mr Bradberry said the "secluded" location and presence of Mr Jeffries' personal staff, dressed in A&F uniforms, supervising events meant he "didn't feel safe to say 'no' or 'I don't feel comfortable with this'".

The BBC investigation also uncovered details of the "well-oiled machine" organising sex events for Mr Jeffries, in which:

"Recruiters" would find men to attend his events and receive between $500 and $1,000 from Mr Jacobson for every referral

Mr Jacobson, described by the men as the "middleman" or "casting agent", found men for the sex events. The BBC was told he forwarded photos of them to Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith

Most of the men allege Mr Jacobson propositioned or sexually "auditioned" them, by requesting or offering to perform oral sex before being introduced to Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith

A personal "groomer" was hired to intimately shave body hair from some of men attending events, an experience some described as "dehumanising"

All the men said they were required to sign non-disclosure agreements. They said they had little time to read it and were not allowed to keep copies, but understood they would be sued if they spoke out

A small group of Mr Jeffries' personal staff, who wore A&F uniforms, supervised the men - even during the sex acts - and handed them money

It is alleged Mr Jeffries funded the entire operation, including the money for referral fees, while Mr Smith organised the cash payments

Domestic staff who worked in Mr Jeffries' former Hamptons home told the BBC events were held there regularly at weekends. Some said they were instructed to leave the premises every Saturday afternoon for several years, leading them to believe something strange was taking place. One former staffer said he understood it was because his boss was having "playtime".

Barrett Pall, a former model turned life coach and activist, said he felt pressured into attending an event in the Hamptons in 2011. Then 22, he said he was recruited by an older model, who received a referral fee, to be his "replacement" for "some sort of sexual experience" with the couple.

He said he felt obliged to comply as the older man had been supporting him financially and he felt indebted. Like the other men, he said initially he attended a "test run" with Mr Jacobson.

Mr Pall said the older model told him that "you don't have to do anything you don't want to do" but suggested that "the further you go, the better", and alluded to career opportunities. When he arrived at the event, he said he felt under pressure to "perform". "How was I going to leave? I didn't have a car," he said. "I had a chaperone sitting and watching me."

Mr Pall said one of the other men recruited for the event performed oral sex on him as Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith watched. He said the couple then encouraged him to come over to the bed and kiss Mr Jeffries. Later, two other men recruited for the event had sex with the A&F boss and his partner, he added. At one point, Mr Pall said Mr Jeffries was behind him, groping him.

"This experience, I think it broke me," he said. "I think that this stole any ounce of innocence that I had left. It mentally messed me up. But with the language I now have today, I can sit here and tell you that I was taken advantage of."

The largest event described to the BBC was hosted in a private villa at a five-star hotel in 2011, for which dozens of men were flown to Marrakesh. The BBC understands Mr Jeffries and Mr Smith had also invited friends. Alex - who asked for his name to be changed to protect his identity - said he was a struggling model supporting his family back home when he was recruited as a dancer for the event, where he expected he would have to strip.

Mr Jeffries "took advantage of people in a very vulnerable point in their life, especially when they're around these big cities, coming from small America," Alex said. The former CEO was the "kingpin", he said. "If it wasn't for him none of this would have existed."

Alex, a straight man then in his 20s, said he was auditioned by Mr Jacobson, who praised his dancing but demanded he "finish the job" by performing oral sex on him. "I had debt, I wanted to support my family," said Alex. "I performed the job and I was, like, disgusted."

Thinking "the hardest part was out of the way", Alex flew to Marrakesh for the event a few weeks later. But moments into his dance, he said, Mr Jeffries tried to kiss him. "I was trying to be in it without offending him. I was extremely uncomfortable," Alex said.Eventually, he said he went to hide in a back room where he fell asleep. Alex said he woke up with a condom inside him and feared that the champagne he had been given earlier had been spiked.

"When I put things together, I believe there is a very good possibility I was drugged and raped. I'll probably never, never know for sure the answer of what happened," he said.

Some of the men, including Alex and Mr Bradberry, said they attended more than one event, having been convinced by Mr Jacobson that the next time would be easier or hoping they would eventually be offered modelling work so "it all meant something".

These events "directly affected my self-esteem", said Mr Bradberry. "My twenties were filled with anguish and struggle, anxiety, depression." But he said he now lives a quieter life, "full of hope".

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