Berliner Tageblatt - UK police question three women in Al-Fayed probe

London's Metropolitan Police force said the three women, who were in their 40s, 50s and 60s, were "interviewed under caution", meaning they have not been arrested but are being treated as potential suspects rather than witnesses.

Fayed, who owned famed luxury department store Harrods in London, has been accused of large-scale rape, sexual assault, sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

The Met says a total of 154 people have come forward so far to report allegations as part of its probe into the Egyptian billionaire, who died in 2023 aged 94.

"Over the past 18 months, officers have taken detailed accounts from victims and witnesses to build a comprehensive picture of the alleged offending," the Met said in a statement.

"Information shared during these conversations... has broadened the scope of the inquiry to cover all reported offences including human trafficking," it added.

Commander Angela Craggs described the questioning of the three women as an "important step in a complex and far reaching investigation".

Although Fayed "is no longer alive to face prosecution, we have always been determined to bring anyone who is suspected to have played a part in his offending to justice", she said.

"Victims remain at the centre of this investigation."

- Harrods, Ritz Hotel -

Police opened an investigation in 2024 after women came forward following the airing of a BBC documentary that detailed multiple claims of rape and sexual assault by Fayed.

The Justice for Harrods Survivors group said in November of that year it had received more than 400 enquiries, mainly related to the store but also regarding Fulham football club, the Ritz Hotel in Paris and other entities Fayed owned.

Fayed bought Harrods in 1985, six years after acquiring the Ritz in the French capital. He bought Fulham in 1997.

He was one of Britain's best-known businessmen.

His son Dodi was killed in a 1997 Paris car crash alongside Princess Diana, the former wife of King Charles III.

Fayed sold Harrods in 2010 to the investment arm of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund for a reported £1.5 billion ($2.2 billion).

His accusers say the assaults took place in his apartments in London and his properties in Paris, including the Ritz.

Allegations include a repeated pattern of women who underwent a selection process for positions in the Fayed empire.

Once selected, they were subjected to an "invasive" gynaecological examination, the results of which were shared with Fayed.

The women said that when they tried to complain about their abuse, they were threatened by senior security staff, demoted and subjected to false allegations until they had "no choice" but to leave Harrods.

R.Adler--BTB