‘A monster’: lawyers for Mohamed Al Fayed’s alleged victims liken case to Savile
GuardianSEP 13 2024
Mohamed Al Fayed, the late former owner of both British department store Harrods and soccer team Fulham FC, is facing new allegations of sexual abuse related to his ownership of the soccer club from 1997-2013.
The legal group Justice for Harrods Survivors (JHS), which already represents 60 women, said 200 people from around the world have now made allegations, including serial rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, and sexual abuse of minors.
According to Gaute Haugenes, who managed Fullham from 2001-2003, Al Fayed like "liked young, blonde girls,." He added that players on the Fulham women's team, which was created under Al Fayed's ownership, weren't allowed to be alone with him.
Mohamed Al Fayed was a monster on par with Jimmy Savile, Harvey Weinstein, and Jeffrey Epstein. His money and power, particularly as the owner of the department store, allowed him to build a dangerously toxic work environment where he could abuse women with impunity. It's tragic that due to this power, his victims only felt capable of speaking up after his death.
The case of Al Fayed goes far beyond a toxic work environment and all the way to the top of the British government and the Royal Family. It's no wonder that the man who bought off members of parliament and had a relationship with the former Duke of Windsor was never prosecuted. Women were likely kept quiet not just by their powerful boss but by the entire upper echelon of British society.