ā€˜Monsterā€™ Al Fayed had elements of Savile, Epstein and Weinstein, lawyers say
Mohamed Al Fayed was a ā€œmonsterā€ whose case involves the ā€œmost horrific elements of ā€¦ Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinsteinā€, his alleged victimsā€™ 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 Harrodsā€™ owner heard there was a ā€œsystematic failure of corporate responsibilityā€.Barrister Dean Armstrong KC told reporters: ā€œAnd that systematic failure is on the shoulders of Harrods.ā€The legal team also represents women who were employed by the Paris Ritz and investigations were ongoing into ā€œall entities that he had involvement inā€, including Fulham Football Club.In a statement, Fulham said the club is ā€œdeeply troubled and concernedā€ about the case and were ā€œin the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is or has been affectedā€.Mr Armstrong said compensation from Harrods for women who have claimed sexual abuse against Mr Al Fayed would be ā€œwelcomeā€, but added: ā€œWe are not going to sit here and accept any suggestion that we are only interested in money.ā€The 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 ā€œnever seen a case as horrific as thisā€.He told reporters: ā€œThis case combines some of the most horrific elements of the cases involving Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein.ā€œSavile because in this case, as in that, the institution, we say, knew about the behaviour.ā€œEpstein because in that case, as in this, there was a procurement system in place to source the women and girls ā€“ as you know there are some very, young victims.ā€œAnd Weinstein, because it was a person at the very top of the organisation who was abusing his power.ā€œWe will say plainly, Mohamed Al Fayed was a monster.ā€Mr Armstrong said the legal team has been retained by 37 of Mr Al Fayedā€™s accusers and is ā€œin the process of being retained by many moreā€.Also at the press conference was an alleged victim of Mr Al Fayed, who went by the name of Natacha, and said the ā€œfear instilled left me paralysedā€.She said: ā€œThese 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.ā€œThese incidents lasted seconds, but the fear instilled left me paralysed.ā€œAl Fayed brushed off these moments like they had never happened, but I was always reminded not to mention them to anyone.ā€Natacha added: ā€œUnbeknownst to me, I had walked into a lionā€™s den, a layer of cover-ups, deceit, lies, manipulation, humiliation and gross sexual misconduct.ā€US lawyer Gloria Allred described Harrods as a ā€œtoxic, unsafe and abusive environmentā€ 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: ā€œThey 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.ā€œThe allegations also include the unauthorised disclosure to Mohamed Al Fayed of the examination results of employees he targeted for sexual abuse.ā€Barrister Bruce Drummond told the press conference that Harrods ā€œmust accept responsibility for the damage these women have sufferedā€.He said: ā€œThis is one of the worst cases of corporate sexual exploitation that certainly I, and perhaps the world has ever seen.ā€œIt was absolutely horrific and I canā€™t stress that word enough.ā€Mr 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 ā€œutterly appalledā€ 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.
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