Maxwell Jeffries was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1985. Max's parents owned a neighborhood grocery on the corner of 7th street and Willow Avenue. Max's father, James Wenfield Jeffries, served in the infantry during the Vietnam conflict. After returning home the senior Jeffries married long-time sweetheart Melissa Penrose in 1983 and Max was born two years later. His father died of a heart attack in 1998 and his mother died tragically in a car accident a year later.
After the death of his mother Jeffries lived with his Aunt, Mabel Jones, also of Hoboken. Jeffries graduated at the top of his class in 2001 and worked a year in the Merchant Marines until joining the Army in 2003. He was recruited by Army Special Operations and was deployed overseas to an unspecified location after two years of special training at an undisclosed US facility. In 2011 Jeffries was deployed under false pretenses to New York City where, after disembarking, he discovered that his Social Security record, birth certificate, drivers license, and all other forms of identify had been eliminated along with his military record and pension. Using his urban survival skills Jeffries lived on the streets for six months. His current location is unknown.