A group of former Harrods workers have accused the last surviving brother of Mohamed Al Fayed of sexual assault.
The three women allege that Ali Fayed assaulted them whilst they were employees at the famous London department store during the 1990s when the Fayed brothers owned and ran Harrods.
Mr Fayed, who now lives in the US, ‘unequivocally denies’ any wrongdoing, with a spokesperson for the 82-year-old telling the BBC that the businessman ‘will not be scapegoated’ for incidents which ‘simply never took place’.
The alleged sexual assaults occurred in multiple countries including England, Scotland, Switzerland and the United States.
All three women are now calling for a criminal investigation to be opened by authorities and have said that they did not feel able to speak out at the time the alleged incidents took place.
Prior to the alleged assaults by Ali Fayed, all three women claim they were also assaulted by his older brother Mohamed Al Fayed.
It brings the number of women to have made accusations against the former Harrods chairman to 111, although he was never prosecuted whilst alive.
Harrods, which has been under new ownership since 2010, told the BBC that the new allegations further point to the ‘breadth of abuse’ by Mohamed Al Fayed and ‘raise serious allegations’ against his brother Ali.
Ali Fayed (pictured) has been accused by three former Harrods workers of sexual assault
Ali Fayed is the last surviving brother of former Harrods chairman Mohamed Al Fayed (pictured), who the three women have also accused of assault
The Fayed brothers owned and ran the famous London department store Harrods during the 1990s
Speaking to the BBC, all three women spoke of their experiences with Ali Fayed.
One of the women said that ‘his hands were everywhere’ and that he only stopped because ‘one of his little boys started calling for him’.
Another of the women, Amy, has waived her right to anonymity and said she wants ‘an explanation’ from Mr Fayed and an ‘understanding of what was going on that can help (her) step forward and begin healing’.
The third woman, Frances, also waived her anonymity to come forward and speak about her time working at Harrods in-store interior design studio.
Frances alleged that it did not take long after her 1989 arrival at Harrods for Mohamed Al Fayed to begin bullying and sexually abusing her.
Accusing Al Fayed of regularly trying to grab her breasts and grope her in the workplace, Frances said that the former Harrods chairman also routinely subjected her to foul verbal tirades.
Frances claimed that her alleged abuse at the hands of Ali Fayed began at his private office and apartment at 60 Park Lane in central London.
She added that the Fayed brothers would regularly shower her with gifts in what was a ‘see-saw’ between abusive behaviour and praise.
The new claims against Mohamed Al Fayed (pictured) bring the total number of assault allegations against him to 111
Harrods, which has been under new ownership since 2010, told the BBC that the new allegations further point to the ‘breadth of abuse’ by Mohamed Al Fayed and ‘raise serious allegations’ against his brother Ali
However, she alleged that the abuse escalated in 1992 when she was flown to Connecticut to discuss interior design plans with Ali Fayed’s wife.
Frances recalled staying in one of the family’s guest bedrooms when Ali Fayed entered her room whilst she was undressing in its en suite bathroom.
She then alleged that Ali Fayed forced himself on top of her when she entered the bedroom in her underwear, with Mr Fayed putting his hands ‘inside’ her bra and pants.
Upon her return to London, Frances claimed that Mohamed Al Fayed ‘exploded’ as he believed she and his brother Ali Fayed had had sex. She says from then onwards, the physical abuse committed by Mohamed Al Fayed stopped.
Although she said that the abuse by Ali Fayed continued at both his Scottish farmhouse and private London office.
Frances was fired the following year for being in a relationship with another Harrods employee, something with Mohamed Al Fayed reportedly forbade between staff. She later settled an unfair dismissal case with the court.
‘To this day I suffer with terrible anxiety and panic attacks and I don’t like people in my space’, Frances said, adding that the period after her dismissal saw her ‘going underground and shutting herself down’.
Mohamed Al Fayed (right) pictured with younger brother Ali (left). They were co-owners of Harrods and ran the famous department store together
Mohamed Al Fayed (left) and Ali Fayed (right) have both been accused by three woman of committing sexual assault during the 1990s
Amy, who worked closely with Mohamed Al Fayed for almost three years, said the former Harrods chairman abused her through her period of employment there.
Thinking that Al Fayed’s behaviour was ‘just what being a young woman meant, it was a hazard of the workplace’, Amy did not report the abuse she suffered at the time.
After a year or two in her job, Amy said that she was instructed to go to Switzerland to help Ali Fayed with filing and paperwork.
Travelling together on a Harrods private jet, the pair stayed at the Fayed family’s private chalet in the resort town of Gstaad.
During the trip, Amy alleged that the pair went to a local swimming pool where Ali Fayed pulled her under the water and began to grope and fondle her.
As the alleged assault occurred, Amy claimed that Ali Fayed laughed at her until she managed to break free from his grasp.
Amy resigned from her position a short period of time after the trip.
Not wanting to upset her family and feeling that people would not believe her, Amy also chose not to come forward about her alleged assaults.
‘By not saying anything, I think it’s a coping technique, to just put it away… To this day, in certain social situations, I don’t want to be noticed, I try to stay invisible’, Amy said.
A third woman named Laura also spoke to the BBC and alleged that she had been assaulted by Ali Fayed at his private apartment after his sexual harassment of her escalated to serious sexual assault during her time working for Harrods HR department.
Laura said that prior to the assault at his private residence, Ali Fayed gifted her a bottle of wine from the year she was born and a necklace valued at £6,500.
She never saw or interacted with Ali Fayed again after the alleged incident.
All three women are now pursuing civil legal action against Harrods through the Justice for Harrods Survivors campaign.
Speaking to the BBC, a spokesperson for Ali Fayed stated that the 82-year-old denies all allegations of wrongdoing: ‘The alleged incidents simply never occurred. Mr Fayed is not a perpetrator and will not be scapegoated.
‘He will robustly defend himself against these unsubstantiated claims and will not allow false accusations to go unchallenged’.
