Police pass Mohamed Al Fayed case file to prosecutors

Metropolitan Police detectives have submitted a full evidential file to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) against a man in his 80s, marking the first charging referral in the investigation into alleged sexual offences linked to the late Mohamed Al Fayed. The CPS must now decide whether anyone can be charged over claims that staff and associates enabled abuse tied to the former Harrods owner, who died in 2023 without facing prosecution.

The move matters because Al Fayed built one of Britain's most famous luxury retail empires while more than 400 alleged victims and witnesses have since come forward. For survivors and advocacy groups, a charging decision would test whether accountability can reach beyond the billionaire himself.

Key Takeaways

• Met Police submitted an evidential file to the CPS on 24 August 2026 relating to one man in his 80s and two indecent assaults on two women in London.
• Seven suspects have been interviewed under caution in Operation Cornpoppy, including offences linked to aiding rape, sexual assault, and human trafficking for sexual exploitation.
• Survivors accuse investigators of failing a legal duty to refer them to the UK's National Referral Mechanism for modern slavery victims.
• More than 400 allegations against Mohamed Al Fayed span 1977 to 2014; Harrods is settling more than 250 compensation claims after its 2010 sale.
• The Independent Office for Police Conduct is separately examining the Met's handling of the case, including a data breach exposing more than 140 victims' emails.

What Did Police Submit to Prosecutors?

On 24 August 2026, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that detectives had sent a complete evidential file to the CPS for a charging decision, according to BBC News.

The file relates to one suspect, described as a man in his 80s, and concerns two indecent assaults on two women in London. Officers said they will continue working closely with CPS prosecutors as the case progresses.

A Met spokesperson added that seven suspects have now been interviewed under caution on suspicion of offences including aiding and abetting rape and sexual assault, assisting in the commission of sexual offences, and human trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

Last month, a man and a woman, both in their 80s, were interviewed under caution on those suspicions. Earlier in 2026, three women in their 40s, 50s and 60s, plus one man in his 60s, were also questioned.

Who Is Mohamed Al Fayed and Why Does This Case Matter?

Mohamed Al Fayed owned Harrods for 25 years before selling the Knightsbridge department store in 2010. He also owned Fulham Football Club and died in 2023 aged 94, having never been charged with any offence.

More than 20 women accused him of sexual assault in a BBC documentary and podcast that aired in September 2024. Since those allegations surfaced, more than 400 alleged victims or witnesses have come forward to lawyers, the BBC reported.

The Journal reported that more than 400 allegations of sexual misconduct against Al Fayed date from 1977 to 2014, covering sexual assault, rape, sexual exploitation and human trafficking. The Met's Operation Cornpoppy, launched in November 2024, is examining people who may have facilitated or enabled his alleged crimes.

Harrods, no longer owned by the Al Fayed family, previously told the BBC it was settling more than 250 compensation claims. The scale of those payouts underscores how wealth and institutional power can outlast individual reputations — a theme we cover in our Wealth Hacks & Passive Income hub.

Why Are Survivors Criticising the Met Police?

While prosecutors review the new file, survivors and campaign groups have raised separate concerns about how investigators treated people who reported abuse.

Four survivors, all members of the advocacy group No One Above, told the Press Association that the Met failed in its legal duty to offer them a referral to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), the UK's official framework for identifying victims of modern slavery. Instead, they self-referred through the anti-slavery charity Unseen.

All four later received positive conclusive grounds decisions from the Home Office confirming them as victims of modern slavery or human trafficking. GB News reported that at least five survivors have now been confirmed through the NRM process.

Statutory first responders, including police, must refer to the NRM all children and consenting adults they have reasonable grounds to believe may be victims. Survivors told The Journal they believe the Met did not offer referrals to anyone who came forward about Al Fayed until April 2026.

The Met is understood to believe there is no automatic requirement to submit a referral for offences that occurred before the NRM launched in April 2009 and before the Modern Slavery Act 2015. The Home Office, however, views the historical nature of the alleged exploitation as irrelevant for referral purposes.

Former head of the Met's anti-trafficking unit Phil Brewer told the Press Association he had never seen guidance backing the force's position. Survivor Isabella, who worked at Harrods in 2001, said referring suspected victims is a statutory duty triggered when trafficking is suspected, not when it is proved.

What Other Failures Have Survivors Reported?

GB News reported that more than 140 people who reported being victims of Mohamed Al Fayed had their email addresses accidentally exposed in a Met distribution list on 11 August 2026. The force apologised, describing the breach as human error, and said everyone affected was contacted directly.

The incident is being investigated as a priority, and the Met has referred the matter to the Information Commissioner's Office. A Home Office spokesman said the Independent Office for Police Conduct is also investigating the Met's handling of Al Fayed allegations.

No One Above said the investigation had inflicted two data breaches on survivors, delayed answers to their questions, and dismissed calls for proper safeguarding. The group said it had lost faith in Operation Cornpoppy and urged the National Crime Agency to take the lead.

Gold commander Andy Day wrote to survivors on 11 August that work continues on potential NRM referrals and that the investigation team will contact people where appropriate.

What Happens Next?

The CPS must now decide whether the man in his 80s can be charged based on the submitted evidence. That decision could take weeks or months depending on the complexity of the file.

Co-chairs of Justice for Fayed and Harrods Survivors, Jen Mills and Lindsay Mason, welcomed the file submission. Their statement said it matters most for the two women whose allegations sit at the centre of the referral, both members of their group.

No One Above called on the Met to confirm it is securing evidence on all perpetrators and co-conspirators, including financial and documentary records of how victims were recruited, screened, moved, harboured and silenced.

With 156 victims who contacted the Met directly — including 21 who came forward before Al Fayed's death — the case remains one of the largest sexual abuse investigations the force has ever run. Whether prosecutors act on this first file may signal how far accountability will extend beyond the Harrods billionaire who never stood trial.