A model who worked at Abercrombie & Fitch is suing the popular clothier for $1 million, claiming he was duped into posing nude and pleasuring himself in front of a modeling agent the retailer urged him to see, according to TMZ.com
Benjamine Bowers said in his suit that an A&F casting director referred him to agent Brian Hilburn, who conducted the photo shoot last June in Jackson, Miss. Bowers said HIlburn told him he needed to have a relaxed look for his modeling portfolio and he wanted to capture Bowers’ expression immediately after he had finished gratifying himself – in the buff, according to TMZ
Benjamine, who also claims Hilburn exposed himself during the shoot, believes it was never intended to ehance his career and blames Abercrombie & Fitch and the agent for using him, TMZ said.
There was no response from Abercrombie & Fitch or HIlburn.
Last year the retailer, which specializes in casual wear for young people and also owns Hollister, came under fire for marketing push-up bikini tops to girls as young as 7 as part of its Abercrombie Kids line. It later "re-categorized the Ashley swimsuit as padded," the company said.
In 2002 the clothier was criticized for offering children’s-size thong underwear containing phrases like "eye candy" and "wink wink."
According to a Huffingtonpost.com posting, A&F "has been accused in the past of everything from forcing employees to buy and wear its products to racial, religious and physical disability discrimination." The company has denied the claims.
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