Mohamed Al Fayed accuser says fear left her ‘paralysed’
The woman, who went by the name Natacha, described Mohamed Al Fayed as a ‘sick predator’
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Your support makes all the difference.One of Mohamed Al Fayed’s alleged victims said the “incidents lasted seconds”, but fear left her “paralysed”.
The woman, who went by the name Natacha, told a press conference on Friday about the alleged abuse she suffered at the hands of the former Harrods owner.
Mohamed Al Fayed, a sick predator, lured me in by using the same modus operandi he used time and time again
She said: “Mohamed Al Fayed, a sick predator, lured me in by using the same modus operandi he used time and time again.
“I was subjected to Aids and STD testing without consent, and now believe in hindsight, I was checked for my purity.”
She was speaking at a press conference in London alongside barristers representing the alleged victims of Mr Al Fayed.
More than 20 female former employees have spoken to the BBC as part of a special investigation, coming forward with allegations of assault and physical violence at properties in London and Paris.
Five women alleged they had been raped by Mr Al Fayed, who died last year at the age of 94.
Speaking about what happened in meetings with Mr Al Fayed, Natacha said: “These private meetings turned into more of a forced kiss, his hands gripping your face to his lips or pulling you down on his lap, where his hands were free to explore any part of your body that he wished.
“These incidents lasted seconds, but the fear instilled left me paralysed.
“Al Fayed brushed off these moments like they had never happened, but I was always reminded not to mention them to anyone.”
Natacha said she was summoned to Mr Al Fayed’s private apartment one night “on the pretext of a job review”.
She said: “The door was locked behind me… I saw his bedroom door partially open – there were sex toys on view.
“I felt petrified. I perched myself at the very end of the sofa and then… Mohamed Al Fayed, my boss, the person I worked for, pushed himself onto me.”
Natacha said as Mr Al Fayed was on top of her she managed to “kick free and free myself”.
She continued: “I ran towards the door. I told him I was meeting my father for dinner and he would be worried that I was late.
“He laughed at me – he then composed himself and he told me, in no uncertain terms, that I was never to breathe a word of this to anyone – if I did I would never work in London again and he knew where my family lived. I felt scared and sick.”
Natacha also said the billionaire businessman was “highly manipulative”.
She said: “Mohamed was clever and highly manipulative.
“He behaved like a father figure, often saying ‘call me papa’, often talking about his family and children, as if to make me feel safe around him.”
She continued: “Unbeknownst to me, I had walked into a lion’s den, a layer of cover-ups, deceit, lies, manipulation, humiliation, and gross sexual misconduct.
“The chairman preyed on the most vulnerable, those of us who needed to pay the rent and some of us who didn’t have parents to protect them.”