UK police face probe into handling of sex crimes allegations against Harrods owner Al Fayed
UK police face probe into handling of sex crimes allegations against Harrods owner Al Fayed
LONDON (AP) — British police watchdogs will investigate whether the London force bungled its handling of sex crimes allegations against Mohamed Al Fayed, the late owner of upmarket department store Harrods.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct said Wednesday that it will oversee a probe by the Metropolitan Police Directorate of Professional Standards into whether opportunities were missed to bring the wealthy businessman to justice.
“There is widespread public concern around this case, with a significant number of allegations reported over many years while Mr. Al Fayed was still alive,” said Steve Noonan, director of operations at the conduct watchdog. “It’s important that an investigation is carried out into these complaints to identify if there were any missed opportunities or failures by officers to properly investigate these reports made back in 2008.”
Since the BBC broadcast claims by several former Harrods employees in September, police have been reviewing multiple allegations of rape or sexual assault against Al Fayed, who died in 2023 at the age of 94. The Metropolitan Police is currently reviewing 21 allegations that were made before Al Fayed died, and in total more than 100 women have contacted police to say they were sexually abused by the tycoon.
Police and Harrods executives have faced questions about why action wasn’t taken against Al Fayed while he was alive. He was questioned by detectives in 2008 over the alleged sexual abuse of a 15-year-old, and police twice passed files of evidence about him to prosecutors. He was never charged.
The Egypt-born businessman moved to Britain in the 1960s and bought Harrods, a London landmark, in the mid-1980s. He became a well-known figure through his ownership of the store and the London soccer team Fulham. He was often in the headlines after his son Dodi was killed alongside Princess Diana in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
Al Fayed sold Harrods in 2010 to a company owned by the state of Qatar through its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority.
