The allegations have been specified by a BBC documentary, titled ‘Al-Fayed: Predator at Harrods’.
Former Harrods boss Mohamed Al-Fayed, whose son Emad El-Din “Dodi” Mohamed Fayed was killed in a 1997 Paris automobile crash alongside Princess Diana, has been accused of a number of rapes. In response to The BBC, 5 ladies have claimed that they have been raped by the billionaire, who died final 12 months aged 94, after they labored on the luxurious London division retailer Harrods, which Al-Fayed owned from 1985 to 2010. The outlet revealed that it had heard testimonies from greater than 20 former feminine workers members who declare the billionaire businessman sexually assaulted them, with the incidents allegedly happening in London, St. Tropez, Abu Dhabi and Paris.
The allegations have been specified by a BBC documentary, titled ‘Al-Fayed: Predator at Harrods’. The documentary revealed that in Fayed’s possession, Harrods not solely didn’t intervene however helped cowl up abuse allegations.
In a press release, Harrods’ present house owners stated they have been “totally appalled” by the allegations and that his victims had been failed – for which the shop apologised.
“These have been the actions of a person who was intent on abusing his energy wherever he operated and we condemn them within the strongest phrases,” the assertion learn. “We additionally acknowledge that in this time as a enterprise, we failed our workers who have been his victims and for this we sincerely apologise,” it added.
In response to The BBC, one lady has alleged that the billionaire raped her at his London residence. “I made it apparent that I did not need that to occur. I didn’t give consent. I simply wished it to be over,” she informed the outlet.
One other lady claimed that she was raped on the residence in Mayfair when she was a young person. “We have been all scared. He actively cultivated worry,” she stated. “If he stated ‘bounce’ workers would ask ‘how excessive’.”
A lady named Sophia, who labored as Fayed’s private assistant from 1988 to 1991, says the billionaire tried to rape her greater than as soon as. “I could not depart. I did not have a [family] residence to return to, I needed to pay lease,” she stated. “I knew I needed to undergo this and I did not wish to. It was horrible and my head was scrambled,” she added.
One other of his private assistants, Gemma, who labored for Fayed from 2007 to 2009, claimed he raped her at Villa Windsor in Paris, a former residence of King Edward VIII and his spouse Wallis Simpson. She stated that as a part of the settlement for her leaving the job, she needed to shred all proof and signal a non-disclosure settlement (NDA) in return for a sum of cash. Ms Gemma informed the outlet {that a} shredding truck got here to her lawyer’s workplace and a member of HR from Harrods was current.
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Tony Leeming, a former Harrods division supervisor of 10 years, stated that he was conscious of the abuse of girls on the store flooring, however claimed he didn’t know concerning the allegations of assault or rape. Mr Leeming’s testimony is backed by former members of Fayed’s safety workforce.
“We have been conscious that he had this very robust curiosity in younger ladies,” stated Eamon Coyle, who joined Harrods in 1979 as a retailer detective, then turned deputy director of safety from 1989-95.
Many ladies informed the BBC that after they started working instantly for Fayed they underwent medicals – together with invasive sexual well being checks carried out by medical doctors. The outlet additionally reported that earlier than his dying, the billionaire confronted quite a few sexual assault claims in 1997, 2008 and 2017.
Of the ladies the outlet spoke to for the investigation, a complete of 14 have introduced civil claims in opposition to Harrods for damages. The division retailer’s present house owners began settling these in July 2023, based on the outlet.
Notably, Fayed, born in Egypt, moved to the UK in 1974 and was already a well known public determine when he took over Harrods in 1985. His son Dodi was killed in a automobile crash alongside Princess Diana in 1997. He has change into recognized to a brand new era by means of the 2 most up-to-date Netflix collection of ‘The Crown’.