A woman has come forward to BBC Scotland with harrowing allegations of being trafficked to the Scottish Highlands, drugged, sexually assaulted, and held captive by Salah Fayed, the late brother of former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed. The woman, identified only as Jill to protect her legal identity, says she was a young Harrods employee in the 1990s when she was recruited under the guise of an executive training program.

A Pattern of Abuse

Jill alleges that she was flown on the Fayed family's private jet to Balnagown Estate in Easter Ross, where she was repeatedly assaulted. She is among hundreds of women who have accused the Fayed brothers of abuse. Since Mohamed Al Fayed's death in 2023, numerous women have alleged sexual abuse by him, and his brother Salah, who died in 2010, has also faced multiple accusations.

In her interview, Jill described Salah Fayed as "a very cruel man" who exploited her vulnerabilities and exerted near-total control over her life. She began her career at Harrods working for Mohamed Al Fayed in a heavily monitored office staffed mostly by young women, where access was tightly controlled and interaction with others was discouraged. Soon after, she was assigned to work for Salah Fayed, a move she initially thought might be an improvement. "Mohamed seemed creepy to me," she said. Instead, her situation worsened.

She was taken to Scotland twice, both times on the family's private jet, landing in Inverness where vehicles would transport her to the estate. Balnagown Estate had three residences, one for each brother. Jill described Salah Fayed's house as smaller than Mohamed's, overlooking a valley with forest behind, and isolated.

It was there, she alleges, that Salah Fayed began giving her illegal substances. "The first time he forced me to take the drugs he tried to trick me into taking them," she said. "He had me locked in a room. He said 'you need to take this, it's good for you'. He lied about what it was and when I refused he screamed at me and forced me to take it. The drugs were part of his method of assaulting me."

Jill said he controlled what she ate, wore, and who she spoke to. "I was isolated, for most of the time," she said. "He knew I had some vulnerabilities and he exploited them. He made me feel I was a terrible person."

Escape and Aftermath

Escaping the situation was difficult, and Jill says she only gradually came to understand the full extent of what had happened to her. "By the time I got away, I was very aware of what he was doing and it took some effort to get away," she said. "I was by then aware that I could not have been the only one. I tried to raise the alarm, I tried to warn people."

Salah Fayed was one of three brothers who purchased Harrods in 1985. After Mohamed Al Fayed's death, more than 20 women accused him of sexual assault in a BBC documentary, Predator at Harrods, which aired in 2024. Since then, over 400 alleged victims or witnesses have come forward to lawyers.

Police Scotland has confirmed it is investigating allegations connected to Balnagown Estate. A spokesperson said: "Three people have been identified in connection with offending against a number of victims. Our inquiries are ongoing and it would be inappropriate to comment further."

The Metropolitan Police is conducting a separate investigation into allegations linked to Mohamed Al Fayed and those suspected of facilitating his offending, describing it as one of its largest and most complex investigations. "Seven suspects have so far been interviewed under caution on suspicion of offences including aiding and abetting rape and sexual assault, assisting the commission of sexual offences, and human trafficking for sexual exploitation," a statement said. "To date, 168 victims have now come forward. We will continue to assess victim testimonies for evidence of human trafficking."

In a confidential note shared with survivors, about 70 people have been referred to the Home Office as potential victims of trafficking.

Jill is aware of other women who allege abuse by Salah Fayed in Scotland, though some have never reported publicly. She supports calls for a statutory public inquiry and is speaking out due to concerns that police investigations are not looking far enough. She has contacted the Metropolitan Police and is pursuing legal action.

Harrods, no longer owned by the Fayed family, said it recognizes the "remarkable bravery" of survivors and supports them in their pursuit of justice. The retailer has established a redress scheme for survivors of abuse linked to Mohamed Al Fayed.

For Jill, any compensation would be a partial refund for the impact on her life. "You've lost years of your life," she said. "You've had all these treatment costs, it's impacted your career, impacted your family, so yes they do need to put that right."

"The girl I was when I was sent to that man is gone," she added. "I don't know who she would have been or what her life would have been like. My life's work has been recovering from this. It has been a bitter, bitter, decades-long struggle."

The BBC has contacted Balnagown Estate for comment twice, but has not received a reply.