Crystal Hefner, widow of Hugh Hefner, is calling for an investigation into the Hugh M. Hefner Foundation, alleging it possesses her late husband’s personal scrapbooks and diaries containing highly sensitive information and explicit images of women and, “possibly,” underage girls.
The announcement was made Tuesday during a news conference led by prominent women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred, who is representing Crystal Hefner in regulatory complaints filed in California and Illinois.
Hefner said she believes the foundation holds approximately 3,000 personal scrapbooks belonging to her late husband, containing thousands of nude images depicting sexual activity and intimate moments.
“The materials span decades beginning in the 1960s. And may include images of girls who were underage at the time and could not consent to how their images would be retained or controlled,” Hefner said.
“They may also contain images of women who did not consent to their images being taken in the first place,” she added.
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Allred further alleged that some of the images may have been taken while the women were intoxicated.
“It is critical for the public to understand that I am not referring to images that appeared in magazines,” Hefner said. “My focus is on how Hugh Hefner’s personal scrapbooks chronicled private moments that took place behind closed doors.”
According to Allred, regulatory complaints have been submitted to the attorneys general in California, where Hugh Hefner lived, and Illinois, where the foundation is headquartered. The complaints request an investigation into how the materials are being handled and stored, citing concerns about potential distribution or unauthorized access.
It remains unclear how the foundation obtained the scrapbooks. Hefner said she was told they are stored in a California facility, though she had previously been informed that some were kept in a private residence for scanning and digitization. She expressed concern that the materials could be sold or compromised in a data breach.
“Crystal did not consent to having her intimate images stored by and accessible to the foundation, and we believe that many of the other women and or girls depicted did not consent either,” Allred said.
Hefner also disclosed that she was removed Monday from her roles as chief executive officer and president of the foundation after declining to resign.
“The concerns I raised about consent, safety, and security were ignored,” Hefner said. “Though I declined to resign my position yesterday in direct response to my escalating concerns regarding the handling of private photos contained in the scrapbooks, I was unilaterally removed.”
The foundation did not respond to multiple requests for comment. On its website, it describes itself as a philanthropic organization supporting civil rights and liberties, with emphasis on First Amendment rights and drug policy reform.
No evidence was presented at the news conference to substantiate the allegations.
“This is not about money. I am seeking dignity, safety and the destruction of non-consensual intimate materials so that the exploitation does not continue under the banner of philanthropy,” Hefner said.
“Thousands of women may be affected. This is a civil rights issue. Women’s bodies are not property, not history, and not collectibles,” she added.
