Woman trafficked to Scottish Highland estate by Salah Fayed, drugged and abused
A former Harrods employee says Salah Fayed drugged, sexually assaulted and held her prisoner at Balnagown Estate in Easter Ross. Police Scotland says three people have been identified in connection with offences at the estate.
Former Harrods employee describes repeated assaults at Balnagown Estate in Easter Ross
A woman has told BBC Scotland she was trafficked to the Scottish Highlands, drugged, sexually assaulted and held prisoner by Salah Fayed — the brother of former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed.
Jill, whose name has been changed for legal reasons, said she was a young Harrods employee in the 1990s when she was recruited to what she believed was an executive training scheme. She said she was flown on the Fayed family's private jet to Balnagown, their estate in Easter Ross, where she was repeatedly assaulted on two separate visits.
"When you flew there, you flew into Inverness and their vehicles would pick you up from the airport and take you to the estate," she told BBC Scotland.
Jill said she had initially been assigned to work for Mohamed Al Fayed in a heavily-monitored office staffed largely by young women, where access was tightly controlled and staff were discouraged from interacting with others. She was later moved to work for his brother Salah. "I thought it might be better," she said. "Mohamed seemed creepy to me." Instead, she said, her situation deteriorated rapidly.
Drugs used as a tool of control
On the Balnagown Estate, Jill described three residences — one for each brother. Salah Fayed's house, she said, was smaller than Mohamed's, isolated and overlooking a valley with forest behind it.
She alleged that Salah Fayed began forcing her to take illegal substances, controlling the method and circumstances of her assaults. "The first time he forced me to take the drugs he tried to trick me into taking them," she said. "He had me locked in a room. He said 'you need to take this, it's good for you'. He lied about what it was and when I refused he screamed at me and forced me to take it. The drugs were part of his method of assaulting me."
Jill said Fayed controlled what she ate, wore and who she spoke to. "He knew I had some vulnerabilities and he exploited them. He made me feel I was a terrible person," she said, describing him as "a very cruel man."
Gradual escape and attempts to warn others
Jill said escaping the situation was difficult and that she only gradually came to understand the full extent of what had happened. "By the time I got away, I was very aware of what he was doing and it took some effort to get away," she said. "I was by then aware that I could not have been the only one. I tried to raise the alarm, I tried to warn people."
She said she is aware of other women who alleged they were abused by Salah Fayed in Scotland, though some have never come forward publicly. She said she supports calls from some victims for a statutory public inquiry, and that she was speaking out because of concerns that police investigations were not reaching far enough. Jill has contacted the Metropolitan Police and is also pursuing legal action.
Police investigations ongoing on two fronts
Police Scotland confirmed that three people had been identified in connection with offending against a number of victims at Balnagown Estate. "Our inquiries are ongoing and it would be inappropriate to comment further," a police spokesperson said.
Separately, the Metropolitan Police is investigating allegations linked to Mohamed Al Fayed and those suspected of facilitating his offending — described by the force as one of the largest and most complex investigations it is currently undertaking. Seven suspects have so far been interviewed under caution on suspicion of offences including aiding and abetting rape and sexual assault, assisting the commission of sexual offences, and human trafficking for sexual exploitation. To date, 168 victims have come forward to the Met. Around 70 people have been referred to the Home Office as potential victims of trafficking, according to a confidential note shared with survivors of a meeting between the Met and the All Party Parliamentary Group for Survivors of Fayed and Harrods.
Hundreds of accusers since Mohamed Al Fayed's death
Jill is one of hundreds of women who have alleged abuse by the Fayed brothers. Since Mohamed Al Fayed's death in 2023, more than 400 alleged victims or witnesses have come forward to lawyers, following a 2024 BBC documentary, Predator at Harrods, in which more than 20 women accused him of sexual assault.
Salah Fayed, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2010, has also been accused of abuse by numerous women. He was one of three Fayed brothers who purchased Harrods, the luxury Knightsbridge department store, in 1985.
Harrods, which is no longer owned by the Fayed family, said it recognised the "remarkable bravery" of survivors who had come forward and supported them in their pursuit of justice. The retailer has previously established a redress scheme for survivors of abuse linked to Mohamed Al Fayed.
Source: BBC News