The Metropolitan Police’s handling of complaints against Mohamed Al Fayed is now under investigation, raising public concern over past allegations.
London: So, it turns out the Metropolitan Police is facing some serious scrutiny. They’re looking into how they handled complaints against Mohamed Al Fayed, the former Harrods boss. This all goes back to allegations made before he passed away in 2023.
Right now, the Met is reviewing a total of 21 allegations, and two of those have been sent to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) for further investigation. The IOPC has decided that the Met’s own Directorate of Professional Standards will take the lead on these complaints, but they’ll be under the watchful eye of the IOPC.
Steve Noonan, the IOPC’s director of operations, mentioned that it’s crucial to investigate these complaints. He wants to find out if there were any missed chances or failures by the police in handling these reports from way back in 2008.
There’s a lot of public concern about this case, especially since over 100 alleged victims have come forward, claiming they were sexually abused by Al Fayed. The youngest victim was reportedly just 13 years old at the time.
Interestingly, the police had sent files to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision a couple of times, but nothing really came of it. They even sought advice on several occasions, but the investigations didn’t go anywhere.
Now, the Met is also looking into more than five individuals who might have helped Al Fayed in his alleged crimes, which are said to have spanned decades. There are even claims of police corruption, with reports suggesting that some officers might have taken bribes to help him avoid accountability.
