James MacArthur, former chief executive of Harrods, told the BBC he witnessed “abhorrent” behaviour by Mohamed Al Fayed but did not witness sexual abuse.
The late Harrods boss has been accused of sexual assault and rape by more than 20 women who spoke to the BBC in a documentary broadcast last week.
Mr MacArthur was Harrods chief executive for ten months in 2008 when London police were investigating an alleged assault on a 15-year-old girl in a Harrods meeting room.
He said he was unaware of the investigation and although it was reported in the media at the time, he said he had no recollection of it.
He told the BBC in a written statement: “I did serve as chief executive of Harrods for a very short and unhappy period of just 10 months in 2008 under Mr Fayed. [sic]””.
He said: “While Fayed’s behaviour was abhorrent in many ways and my professional relationship with him was fundamentally dysfunctional, I was not aware of any sexual abuse on his part – and if I had known I would have taken action.”
He said Fayed’s “abhorrent” behaviour included an inappropriate sense of humour and a lack of professional conduct.
Ten months is a very short tenure for a chief executive, and under Fayed’s leadership Harrods has experienced high turnover among its chief executive and other directors.
Mr MacArthur added: “I am also not aware of any Metropolitan Police investigation into Fayed’s conduct in 2008. I would imagine that Fayed would have sought to keep anything like that tightly contained within the security of the chairman’s office.”
The initial 2008 allegation and subsequent investigation was reported in several newspaper articles. When asked about it, Mr McArthur said: “I have absolutely no recollection of it.”
A document was passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, which concluded that there was insufficient evidence Evidence to secure a conviction.
Mr MacArthur added: “I am devastated by the details of the allegations bravely revealed by the BBC. My heart goes out to Fayed’s victims and I sincerely hope they get the justice and closure they seek.”
After leaving Harrods, MacArthur spent four years as CEO of handbag maker Anya Hindmarch before moving on to various roles including chairman of Lulu Guinness, according to his LinkedIn profile. His current occupation is listed as “investor/director/advisor”.
The BBC contacted several former directors of Harrods during Al Fayed’s tenure.
Yesterday, the chief executive of Selfridges, Other MedersThe director of Harrods for six years between 1996 and 2002 told the BBC he was “shocked” by the allegations of rape and sexual assault detailed in the documentary but said he had “never seen or heard anything of such ‘abhorrent’ behaviour”.
Richard Simonin, who served as CEO from 2003 to 2005, declined to comment when contacted by the social networking site LinkedIn.
Harrods was bought by the Gulf state of Qatar in 2010. Its new owners admitted they had failed victims and said they would settle legal claims.
Yesterday it was reported that Harrods Survey existing employees It has nothing to do with any of the charges against Fayed, who died last year at the age of 94.
