Mohamed Al-Fayed was best-known as the eccentric wealthy owner of Harrods and for his connection with the late Princess Diana . But now darker allegations have surfaced that he raped and sexually assaulted more than 20 female ex-employees at his luxury London department store. Al Fayed faced groping and sexual assault allegations as well as one claim of rape which was investigated by police in 2015 but did not lead to any charges.
According to their accounts, the sexual assaults happened in London, Paris, St Tropez and Abu Dhabi. The BBC has heard testimony from some of Al-Fayed's former employees who gave harrowing details of alleged sex attacks . The allegations will be heard tonight as part of a podcast and feature on BBC Sounds and iPlayer.
At the time of his death last year aged 94, most remembered him for his royal connection. After Diana separated from King Charles in 1992, she began to form a new life for herself away from the R oyal Family . She used her new-found freedom and the huge interest surrounding her as a platform for vital charity work, raising awareness of topics her in-laws shied away from.
And in doing this she met the late Al Fayed, an Egyptian businessman often named as one of the richest men in the world at the time. While it's unknown where they first met, their circles would have crossed regularly as he sponsored many of the charities she was involved with. In the summer of 1997, the year after Charles and Diana were finally able to officially divor.