Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al Fayed , whose son Dodi died alongside Princess Diana in a 1997 car crash in Paris, has been accused of rape by multiple women, a new BBC documentary claims. In “Al Fayed: Predator at Harrods,” which drops on BBC iPlayer and BBC Two today, more than 20 women put forward allegations of rape, attempted rape, sexual assault and female violence. The majority of the women making the allegations are former employees at Harrods, the luxury British department story Al Fayed owned for 26 years.
They worked there between the late 1980s and 2000s and the assaults are alleged to have occurred in London and Paris, where he owned the Ritz hotel as well as a historic villa once belonging to Edward VIII. Al Fayed died last year at the age of 94. According to the documentary, which is accompanied by a “World of Secrets” podcast, also from the BBC, police investigated a rape allegation in 2015 but did not press charges.
One woman said she went to police in 2018 but was told that Al Fayed, who had dementia, was too old to be prosecuted. Thirteen women told the BBC they were sexually assaulted at a block of apartments in Park Lane, where Al Fayed would often offer female employees working late a place to stay. Four alleged that they were raped.
A further nine women said they were sexually assaulted in Paris, with five women alleging attempted rape while one woman said she was raped. The documentary also includes testimony from colleagues, including a senior.