âMonsterâ Al Fayed had elements of Savile, Epstein and Weinstein, lawyers say
Mohamed Al Fayed was a âmonsterâ whose case involves the âmost horrific elements of ⌠Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinsteinâ, his alleged victimsâ legal team has said.Five women alleged they had been raped by Mr Al Fayed, who died last year at the age of 94, with a number of others alleging sexual misconduct.A press conference which set out the claims made against the late Harrodsâ owner heard there was a âsystematic failure of corporate responsibilityâ.Barrister Dean Armstrong KC told reporters: âAnd that systematic failure is on the shoulders of Harrods.âThe legal team also represents women who were employed by the Paris Ritz and investigations were ongoing into âall entities that he had involvement inâ, including Fulham Football Club.In a statement, Fulham said the club is âdeeply troubled and concernedâ about the case and were âin the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is or has been affectedâ.Mr Armstrong said compensation from Harrods for women who have claimed sexual abuse against Mr Al Fayed would be âwelcomeâ, but added: âWe are not going to sit here and accept any suggestion that we are only interested in money.âThe legal team featured in a BBC documentary called Al-Fayed: Predator At Harrods, where more than 20 female former employees spoke to the broadcaster as part of a special investigation, coming forward with allegations of assault and physical violence at properties in London and Paris.Speaking at a press conference in London on Friday, Mr Armstrong KC said he had ânever seen a case as horrific as thisâ.He told reporters: âThis case combines some of the most horrific elements of the cases involving Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein.âSavile because in this case, as in that, the institution, we say, knew about the behaviour.âEpstein because in that case, as in this, there was a procurement system in place to source the women and girls â as you know there are some very, young victims.âAnd Weinstein, because it was a person at the very top of the organisation who was abusing his power.âWe will say plainly, Mohamed Al Fayed was a monster.âMr Armstrong said the legal team has been retained by 37 of Mr Al Fayedâs accusers and is âin the process of being retained by many moreâ.Also at the press conference was an alleged victim of Mr Al Fayed, who went by the name of Natacha, and said the âfear instilled left me paralysedâ.She said: âThese private meetings turned into more of a forced kiss, his hands gripping your face to his lips or pulling you down on his lap, where his hands were free to explore any part of your body that he wished.âThese incidents lasted seconds, but the fear instilled left me paralysed.âAl Fayed brushed off these moments like they had never happened, but I was always reminded not to mention them to anyone.âNatacha added: âUnbeknownst to me, I had walked into a lionâs den, a layer of cover-ups, deceit, lies, manipulation, humiliation and gross sexual misconduct.âUS lawyer Gloria Allred described Harrods as a âtoxic, unsafe and abusive environmentâ under the chairmanship of Mr Al Fayed.She told the press conference that the allegations against Mr Al Fayed include serial rape, attempted rape, sexual battery and sexual abuse of minors.Ms Allred said: âThey involved doctors administering invasive gynaecological exams as a condition of employment for some of the employees who were targeted by Mohamed Al Fayed for sexual abuse.âThe allegations also include the unauthorised disclosure to Mohamed Al Fayed of the examination results of employees he targeted for sexual abuse.âBarrister Bruce Drummond told the press conference that Harrods âmust accept responsibility for the damage these women have sufferedâ.He said: âThis is one of the worst cases of corporate sexual exploitation that certainly I, and perhaps the world has ever seen.âIt was absolutely horrific and I canât stress that word enough.âMr Al Fayed had previously been accused of sexually assaulting and groping multiple women, but a previous police investigation did not lead to any charges.Harrods previously said it was âutterly appalledâ by the allegations of abuse and said it had set up a page on its website inviting former employees to come forward if they have allegations.