Barristers say they are representing 60 alleged Al Fayed victims

Barristers representing alleged victims of Mohamed Al Fayed said there are now “60 survivors” and that they have “credible evidence of abuse” at Fulham Football Club.

The former Harrods and Fulham FC owner is accused of multiple sexual assaults, after a BBC investigation published last week.

A spokesman for Justice for Harrods Survivors, a group of barristers representing the alleged victims, said on Friday that there has been an “enormous” response to the investigation.

“To reiterate, our claim is becoming increasingly global in scope.

“We thank each of these brave women for placing their trust in us as we now move forward together.

“As we said last week, given our prolonged experience in dealing with the women impacted by this case, we expected that anywhere Mohamed Al Fayed went, abuse would follow. Sadly, this has proven to be true.

“We are now in possession of credible evidence of abuse at other Al Fayed properties and businesses, including Fulham Football Club.”

Mr Al Fayed bought Fulham in 1997 and under his ownership they rose to the top half of the Premier League in the early 2000s, peaking at qualification for the Europa League.

Extra precautions were put in place to protect Fulham’s women’s team from Mr Al Fayed, former manager Gaute Haugenes said.

Fulham FC said: “We remain in the process of establishing whether anyone at the club is or has been affected by the reports concerning Mr Al Fayed.”

The Football Association (FA) said it was “aware of the reports and will remain in contact with Fulham FC to monitor the matter”.

On Thursday, the Metropolitan Police confirmed they are investigating a number of new allegations made against Mr Al Fayed, in addition to prior reports.

They said they will carry out “full reviews of all existing allegations” of incidents said to have taken place between 1979 and 2013, to ensure there are “no new lines of inquiry based on new information which has emerged”.

Mr Ward apologised and said the business “failed our colleagues”.

He said in a statement that it was clear Mr Al Fayed “presided over a toxic culture of secrecy, intimidation, fear of repercussion and sexual misconduct”.

Another alleged victim told the BBC she was summoned to the billionaire businessman’s apartment where “he became angry, the doors were locked and I couldn’t get out. He raped me”.

Five women claim they were raped by Mr Al Fayed, who died last year at the age of 94, and a number of others have alleged sexual misconduct.

The Met said they were contacting lawyers representing alleged victims to “ensure they have the opportunity to speak with us and report any offences”.

The Met said the initial complaints made by 19 women were reported to them between 2005 and 2023, including three allegations of rape, 15 sexual assaults and one related to trafficking.

Police approached the Crown Prosecution Service five times, including two occasions where a file of evidence was passed on in 2009 and 2015.

No further action was taken against Mr Al Fayed in respect of the original complaints.

Sources within Harrods have said the business has accepted vicarious liability for the conduct of Mr Al Fayed for the purpose of settling claims of alleged victims brought to its attention since 2023, reaching settlements with most.

Some women claimed they were subjected to “intrusive and wholly unnecessary” gynaecological tests to work for Mr Al Fayed, alleging the tests were for checking for sexually transmitted infections.

Alleged victims are to lodge a complaint against Dr Ann Coxon, saying she has “questions to answer” about the examinations.

When Dr Coxon was asked by the BBC in London if she carried out the tests, she replied: “No.”

A General Medical Council spokeswoman said: “If we identify any potential fitness to practise concerns about individual doctors, we will thoroughly examine all relevant information and take action as appropriate.”

The barristers representing the survivors are Dean Armstrong KC, Bruce Drummond, Maria Mulla and Gloria Allred.