Police will ‘explore if others committed crimes’ after Fayed claims

The Metropolitan Police has said it will “fully explore whether any other individuals could be pursued for any criminal offences” following abuse allegations against former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed.

The force said it was making contact with lawyers for the women who have already come forward and putting in place “specialist support for those who have made contact with us in the past”.

It comes after Harrods’s managing director, Michael Ward, said Al Fayed “presided over a toxic culture of secrecy, intimidation, fear of repercussion and sexual misconduct”.

The BBC has heard testimony from more than 20 former Harrods employees who say the billionaire sexually assaulted or raped them.

Al Fayed, who died aged 94 in 2023, took over the luxury department store in 1985 and sold it in 2010.

“We have all seen the survivors bravely speak about the terrible abuse they suffered at the hands of Harrods former owner Mohamed Fayed,” Mr Ward said.

“As we have already stated, we failed our colleagues and for that we are deeply sorry.

“While it is true that rumours of his behaviour circulated in the public domain, no charges or allegations were ever put to me by the Police, the [Crown Prosecution Service], internal channels or others.

“Had they been, I would of course have acted immediately.”

He said the “Harrods of today is unrecognisable to Harrods under [Al Fayed’s] ownership” and that the company had set up a settlement process for the victims.

On Thursday, Harrods said that, following a review over the last year, it had introduced 50 “sexual harassment officers”.

It said the officers receive special training to “provide safe, empathetic assistance and support to workers with complaints of sexual harassment”.

Last week, the BBC published a documentary and podcast – Al-Fayed: Predator at Harrods – outlining testimony from more than 20 women, including five who say they were raped by Al Fayed.

Former staff said Al Fayed would regularly tour Harrods vast sales floors and identify young female assistants he found attractive, and that they would then be promoted to work in his offices upstairs.

After the allegations were published, more former Harrods employees contacted the BBC to say Al Fayed had assaulted them.

The investigation also uncovered evidence that, during Fayed’s ownership, Harrods failed to intervene over abuse allegations.