French authorities probe a vast alleged sex trafficking network by the late Mohamed Al-Fayed and his brother, with victims seeking justice after UK frustrations.

PARIS: French prosecutors are investigating the late Egyptian tycoon Mohamed Al-Fayed and his brother Salah over allegations of operating a vast sex trafficking and abuse network.

The probe, opened last year and handled by a specialised human trafficking unit, follows testimonies from former employees who describe a predatory system likened to that of Jeffrey Epstein.

“Every time I met Mohamed Al-Fayed, he tried to assault me,” his former personal assistant Kristina Svensson told French police of her time working at the Paris Ritz.

Her account echoes allegations first revealed in a 2024 BBC investigation, where several women accused Mohamed Al-Fayed of rape and sexual assault during his ownership of Harrods.

British police have recorded 154 victims alleging abuse by the former Fulham FC owner, with offences spanning more than 35 years.

Frustrated by the pace of the London Metropolitan Police investigation, some victims have turned to France.

“In England they’re ignoring the trafficking… They just want to make it about Al-Fayed and Harrods,” said former employee Rachael Louw, speaking publicly for the first time.

She described being sent to Salah Fayed’s yacht on the French Riviera in 1994 after a intrusive medical exam arranged by Harrods.

The doctor’s report, seen by AFP, contained confidential details about her personal life and health, which was then handed to the company.

“These young women were like meat, and they wanted to know if they were fit to consume,” said lawyer Caroline Joly, part of the French legal team.

Louw testified that her passport was confiscated and she was isolated on the yacht, expected to accompany Salah to dinners with wealthy men and young girls.

She recalled waking one night to find Salah in her bed, claiming he was lonely, leaving her “petrified”.

Louw also witnessed Mohamed Al-Fayed applying lotion and kissing a young girl on his yacht in Saint Tropez.

She eventually escaped by booking a flight and demanding her passport back, after which she blocked out the details for decades.

“How can I be silent? There has to be a cost to what the perpetrators did,” Louw said, explaining her decision to come forward after seeing other victims speak in 2024.

Svensson described a similar pattern of manipulation and assault after being hired as Al-Fayed’s assistant at the Ritz in 1998.

She said her interview focused on her appearance and personal background, with management noting she was the “spitting image” of Al-Fayed’s wife.

“I hoped that in time he would see that I wasn’t interested in him and that he would take me seriously,” Svensson told police, describing herself as a foreigner with no support network.

She recalls staff at the Ritz warning her about microphones and cameras, and a housekeeper in Saint Tropez suggesting she block her bedroom door at night.

The Ritz Paris stated it is “deeply saddened” by the allegations and is “ready to fully cooperate with the judicial authorities”.

Harrods said it “continues to support the bravery of all women in coming forward” and noted that more than 180 survivors have received counselling.

The store urged survivors to claim compensation through its independent redress scheme.

London’s Metropolitan Police said its “investigation into those who could have facilitated or enabled Mohamed Al-Fayed’s offending continues”.

Lawyers for the women argue the case reveals an “organised system” resembling Epstein’s network for procuring young women.

“As with Epstein, with the Al-Fayeds there is a frenzied consumption of young women and an organised system to procure them,” said lawyer Eva Joly.

She emphasised that while the statute of limitations may have expired for some crimes, the investigation can still establish facts and identify prosecutable cases.

 The Sun Malaysia