Face of the Day

Mohamed Fayed, the former owner of Harrods, is said to have raped and sexually assaulted a string of women who worked at the department store.

More than 20 women claimed they were sexually assaulted by the billionaire, who died last year at the age of 94, and five of those said they were raped.

The women, who worked at Harrods from the late 1980s to the 2000s, said assaults were carried out at the company’s offices, in Fayed’s London apartment or on foreign trips, often at the Ritz hotel in Paris.

It is claimed he would regularly tour the department store’s sales floors to identify young female assistants he found attractive before isolating and attacking them.

The BBC revealed the allegations in a documentary and podcast called Al-Fayed: Predator at Harrods. In the expose, the broadcaster claims Harrods not only failed to intervene but also helped cover up allegations against Fayed.

The current owners of Harrods said they were “utterly appalled” by the allegations, stressing that the company today was “very different”.

NZ Herald