Harrods has said more than 250 people are part of its process to settle compensation claims over alleged historic sexual misconduct by the store’s former owner, the late Mohamed Al Fayed.
The London luxury department store said it had “settled a number of claims with women” made against the Egyptian billionaire, who died in 2023 at the age of 94.
Last month, the BBC’s “Al Fayed: Predator At Harrods” documentary reported claims from five women who said they were raped by the entrepreneur, with a number of others alleging sexual misconduct.
The latest statement from the Knightbridge-based store said: “Since 2023, Harrods settled a number of claims with women who alleged historic sexual misconduct by Fayed.
“Since the airing of the documentary, so far there are over 250-plus individuals who are now in the Harrods’ process to settle claims directly with the business.”
NDAs Will Not Be Enforced
Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) have routinely formed part of previous settlement cases between Harrods and the alleged victims, but the department store has told lawyers acting for the women that it will not enforce any rights it may hold over those who signed them.
A team of four lawyers, known as Justice for Harrods Survivors and acting for alleged victims, announced last month that they intended to sue the store for failing to protect their employees and allegedly “enabling” the abuse to take place through a “cover-up culture.”
Comparisons to Savile and Epstein
Barrister Dean Armstrong, KC told the press conference he had “never seen a case as horrific as this.”“This case combines some of the most horrific elements of the cases involving Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein, and Harvey Weinstein,” he said.
“Savile because in this case, as in that, the institution, we say, knew about the behaviour.
“Epstein because in that case, as in this, there was a procurement system in place to source the women and girls—as you know there are some very young victims.
“And Weinstein, because it was a person at the very top of the organisation who was abusing his power.
“We will say plainly, Mohamed Al Fayed was a monster. But he was a monster enabled by a system.”
Barrister Maria Mulla said that some of the alleged victims claimed to have been threatened, demoted, or fired when they attempted to report Al Fayed.
U.S. lawyer Gloria Allred, who has represented women in high profile abuse cases including victims of Epstein and Weinstein, told the conference that Harrods was a “toxic, unsafe, and abusive environment” under the ownership of Al Fayed.
The group of lawyers told media in an update that they were working for 147 women, but it is unclear if there is some overlap between the 250 individuals seeking compensation directly from Harrods and those pursuing legal action.
On Saturday, Scotland Yard said a “detailed and thorough” review of allegations against Al Fayed was taking place, amid criticism of their previous action in response to women who reported alleged abuse years ago.
Case Dropped
Evidence was shown to prosecutors in 2009 and 2015, but they decided not to press charges in either case because there was not “a realistic prospect of conviction.”The Metropolitan Police sought “early investigative advice” from the CPS after 10 further allegations were made, but no further action was taken.
Al Fayed, who was also the owner of Fulham FC, acquired Harrods for £615 million in 1985, having centred his many business interests in London since the mid 1960s.
In 2010, after 26 years at the helm, he sold the department store to the Qatari royal family for a reported £1.5 billion.
The Egyptian was already a well-known figure when his son, Dodi, was catapulted into the spotlight for his ill-fated relationship with Diana, Princess of Wales, which ended in tragedy when the pair were killed in a car crash after leaving the Ritz Hotel in Paris, also owned by Al Fayed, in August 1997.
Since February 1998, Al Fayed maintained that the crash was the result of a conspiracy, and later contended that it was orchestrated by MI6 on the instructions of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. His claims were dismissed by a French judicial investigation.
The allegations against Al Fayed swirled for many years during his lifetime. As far back as December 1997—just months after the deaths of his son and Diana—the ITV current affairs programme “The Big Story” broadcast testimonies from a number of former Harrods employees who made allegations of how the businessman routinely harassed women.
