Three former Harrods employees have come forward with allegations that Salah Fayed, brother of the late Mohamed Al Fayed, sexually abused them during their employment at the luxury department store, expanding the scope of abuse allegations against the powerful family.
The women told the BBC they were victimized in London, the south of France, and Monaco between 1989 and 1997, with incidents including sexual assault, drugging, and what they now recognize as trafficking. All three women say they were also sexually assaulted or raped by Mohamed Al Fayed, then chairman of Harrods.
One victim, identified as Helen who waived her anonymity, describes being raped by Mohamed Al Fayed in a Dubai hotel room when she was 23, before being later targeted by his brother Salah. “He [Mohamed Al Fayed] shared me with his brother,” she said, breaking her silence after 35 years.
Helen recounts being drugged at Salah’s Park Lane home after accepting what she thought was a harmless glass of champagne. She believes she was raped while unconscious, discovering evidence of sexual assault upon waking. “They’ve stolen a part of me,” she said. “It’s changed the course of my entire life.”
Two additional women independently detailed similar patterns of abuse, describing being trafficked abroad and coerced into smoking crack cocaine. “He was trying to get me hooked on crack so he could do whatever he wanted to me,” one woman told the BBC.
A victim identified as Rachael described being recruited at age 23 through Harrods’ human resources department for what was presented as a personal assistant position with Salah. Instead, she says she became a “companion” and was sexually propositioned by older men to whom Salah introduced her. “Was I there to be passed around?” she now questions.
Harrods, under new ownership since 2010, acknowledged the allegations in a statement, saying they point to the “breadth of abuse” by Mohamed Al Fayed and “raise serious allegations” against his brother. Salah Fayed, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2010, was one of three Fayed brothers who purchased Harrods in 1985.
The women say they were silenced for decades by non-disclosure agreements and fear of reprisal. The BBC has viewed Helen’s NDA, which she says she was pressured to sign two months after her assault in Dubai.
The allegations describe a systematic pattern of abuse, with victims often initially spotted by Mohamed Al Fayed during his routine walks of the Harrods shop floor. The women report being manipulated through job offers and positions of trust before being subjected to assault and exploitation.
These new revelations expand understanding of the scope of alleged abuse at Harrods during the Fayed era, suggesting a broader pattern of exploitation involving multiple members of the family and spanning several countries.
