Police investigating claims of sexual assault against Mohamed Al Fayed have handed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service, three years after the former Harrods owner's death at the age of 94. The CPS has said it will not provide a timescale for any decision, with the investigation remaining ongoing, the Met confirms.
Scale of allegations against Al Fayed
More than 400 allegations including rape, sexual assault, sexual exploitation and human trafficking have been made against Al Fayed by at least 156 women, with claims spanning the years 1977 to 2014. At least 21 women came forward while he was alive. The file sent to the CPS relates to a male suspect in his 80s and two indecent assaults on two women in London.
The allegations detail a network of enablers, from lawyers to security henchmen to doctors who carried out “purity examinations” on young female personal assistants. Al Fayed died without any charges ever being brought against him.
Comparison with other cases and survivors' demands
During coverage of the Jeffrey Epstein case, many questioned how so many could turn a blind eye to flagrant abuse. Several Al Fayed survivors have asked why this case lacks the same level of outrage, with the answer often being that significant numbers of people and institutions have a vested interest in not getting to the bottom of it.
The survivors' group Justice for Fayed and Harrods Survivors issued a statement: “Survivors have spent decades either not being believed or being told that Fayed and those around him were too powerful and that nothing could be done – but today is an important reminder that the passage of time does not, by itself, put accountability beyond reach.”
Call for trafficking investigation
Survivors are seeking a trafficking investigation they have requested for almost two years, alleging a trafficking network involving multiple perpetrators and enablers backed by the global movement of illicit funds. At least five survivors have been confirmed by the Home Office as victims of modern slavery. The Met has been accused of failing in its legal duty to offer victims a referral to the national referral mechanism, which identifies modern slavery victims.
No One Above wants confirmation that human trafficking and modern slavery are the primary framework of the Al Fayed investigation, and to know that financial investigators are being utilised to determine how the network was funded and concealed. It remains to be seen if any belated percentage of justice will be served in this case.
