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Five Al‑Fayed Survivors Confirmed as Human Trafficking Victims

National Referral Mechanism rulings formally recognise organised trafficking linked to Harrods and Al‑Fayed’s wider businesses, shifting attention toward alleged enablers under police inquiry.

Overview

  • The Home Office’s National Referral Mechanism has issued conclusive‑grounds decisions for at least five women, with one decision reported in April and four more recorded between May and July 2026.
  • All five cases were referred to the NRM by the charity Unseen UK and the decisions officially identify the women as victims of modern slavery and human trafficking.
  • Survivors say the abuse was not isolated to one man but was enabled by a system that recruited, exploited and silenced women across Harrods, private residences and the tycoon’s international properties.
  • London’s Metropolitan Police have logged about 156–157 reports and have questioned multiple people suspected of facilitating the crimes in Operation Cornpoppy, but no arrests have been made so far.
  • The NRM rulings give survivors access to specialist support and strengthen calls to widen the facilitator inquiry and redress efforts while investigations continue across the UK and France.