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The latest Mohamed Al Fayed allegations after ex-Harrods boss dubbed a ‘monster’

Further allegations about former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed have emerged after the late billionaire was accused of rape and sexual assault by multiple women who worked at the iconic London store.

Lawyers for the alleged victims have said they are also investigating all “entities that he had involvement in”, including Fulham FC although no alleged survivors have come forward from the football club.

At a press conference on Friday, Fayed, who died at the age of 94 last year, was described as “monster” combining “elements of the cases involving Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein”.

Here is what we know about the latest accusations.

Fayed ‘carried viagra and cherry picked staff’ from Harrods floor

During his lifetime, Fayed was accused of groping and sexually assaulting female Harrods employees. One allegation of rape was investigated by police in 2015 but did not lead to any charges.

Following the broadcast of the BBC’s Al Fayed: Predator at Harrods documentary on Thursday, another ex-Harrods staff member has come forward to share her experiences of working with the Egyptian tycoon.

A former member of the luxury department store’s management team has said Fayed would carry viagra in his pocket and “cherry pick” female staff from the shop floor.

The woman, who wanted to remain anonymous, told Sky News Fayed “controlled everything with fear”.

“The power dynamic was so strong, in the blink of an eye you would lose your career and they would try and destroy you. It was this dark psychological trap and everybody was caught,” she said.

She added: “The chairman would walk around the store and he would cherry pick people from the shop floor, if you had blond hair and brown eyes you were favoured.

“He used to say, ‘I want that one up in my office now’. He used to carry Viagra around in his pocket, and people were so scared of his ‘floor walks’ – if you weren’t smiling enough you were in the shit, if you smiled too much you were also in the shit.”

In response to the claims raised in the BBC documentary, Harrods said it was “utterly appalled by the allegations of abuse perpetrated by Mohamed Al Fayed”. It also acknowledged that “during this time as a business we failed our employees who were his victims and for this we sincerely apologise”.

The statement said that since new information came to light in 2023 about historic allegations of sexual abuse by Fayed, it has been Harrods’ priority to “settle claims in the quickest way possible, avoiding lengthy legal proceedings for the women involved”.

The process is still open to affected current and former staff, Harrods added.

Harrods was approached for further comment regarding the recent allegation.

Extra precautions put in place to protect Fulham’s female players

Fulham’s women’s team took extra measures to ensure the safety of its players when in the presence of Fayed, a former manager of the team has claimed.

Fayed owned Fulham FC between 1997 and 2013.

Gaute Haugenes, who managed the team from 2001 to 2003, has said members of staff became aware that the then owner “liked young, blonde girls”.

Mr Haugenes told the BBC that because of this understanding, players were not allowed to be left alone with Fayed.

“I read all the newspapers yesterday of course and to be honest it’s not the biggest surprise,” he said.

“We were aware he liked young, blonde girls. So we just made sure that situations couldn’t occur. We protected the players.”

On Friday, Fulham FC said in a statement: “We are deeply troubled and concerned to learn of the disturbing reports following yesterday’s documentary. We have sincere empathy for the women who have shared their experiences.

“We are in the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is, or has been, affected.”

The club also encouraged anyone with information or experiences relating to the allegations to contact them at [email protected] or the police.

Maria Mulla, a barrister representing some of Fayed’s alleged victims, told reporters on Friday the legal team was not representing any staff or former staff of FFC currently.

‘One of the worst cases of corporate sexual exploitation’ 

At a press conference on Friday, a lawyers representing some 37 of Fayed’s alleged victims, which include six Americans, three Canadians and those from other countries such as Malaysia, Australia, Romania and Italy, described the alleged sexual assaults as among the worst imaginable.

Barrister Bruce Drummond said Harrods “must accept responsibility for the damage these women have suffered”.

“This is one of the worst cases of corporate sexual exploitation that certainly I and perhaps the world has ever seen. It was absolutely horrific,” Mr Drummond said.

Ms Mulla said there were a “number of more serious allegations” that were not aired in the documentary and included the “worst sexual assaults that you can imagine”.

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