Bianca Gascoigne accuses Mohamed Al Fayed of grooming

Bianca Gascoigne has alleged that she was groomed and sexually assaulted by former Harrods boss Mohamed Al Fayed when she labored on the division retailer as a young person.

The TV persona, who’s the adopted daughter of ex-England footballer Paul Gascoigne, was 16 years previous on the time, and mentioned Al Fayed would grope her and drive her to kiss him.

She instructed Sky Information that she didn’t converse out sooner as a result of she didn’t wish to convey “embarrassment and disgrace”.

Gascoigne’s feedback come after Harrods confirmed to the BBC on Monday that greater than 250 folks had been now in its course of to settle compensation claims introduced by girls who allege historic sexual misconduct once more Al Fayed.

Warning: this story accommodates particulars some might discover distressing

The 37-year-old actuality TV star and DJ instructed the broadcaster she used to go to the posh division retailer along with her mother and father when she was rising up, and described Fayed as “charming” and “personable”, saying he used to convey the household presents.

“He used to inform me how a lot of a nasty father my dad was, as a result of he used to return into the shop drunk,” she mentioned.

“He used to inform me that he was a humiliation, that I ought to look to him as a father determine.”

She added she felt a “false sense of safety with him early doorways”.

Gascoigne joined Harrods as a store ground employee however was later promoted to her “dream ” job of turning into a trend purchaser.

However she mentioned Al Fayed would grope her and drive her to kiss him throughout their weekly conferences.

On one event, Gascoigne was supplied the chance to remain within the Harrods Park Lane house earlier than an early morning work flight.

However when Al Fayed turned up on the house, she mentioned she was “gobsmacked”, “shell-shocked” and didn’t know what to do.

“He got here in, after which he sat me down on the couch and was clearly very forceful with the touching and the kissing,” she mentioned.

“He bought his privates out and bought my hand and was attempting to manoeuvre it on his components, and when that did not work, he was attempting to drive my head on his lap.”

She mentioned she managed to “wiggle away” and the encounter was “horrific”.

She thinks Al Fayed realizing who her mother and father had been was what saved her within the second.

“He was doing all this stuff to me and I used to be near people who he knew, and I felt like I could not even inform them both as a result of I did not wish to convey embarrassment and disgrace,” she mentioned, including that not even her mum and pop knew what was happening.

Gascoigne mentioned she was additionally fearful of shedding her job, and that Al Fayed had warned her that she would if she mentioned something.

Gascoigne, who gave start to a daughter final 12 months, mentioned she was compelled to speak about her expertise after a number of victims went public with their tales of abuse by the hands of Al Fayed.

“I really feel like I’ve to do that, I wish to do that, and I wish to stand for the ladies and simply hopefully make any type of change (so) that sooner or later, my daughter would not must undergo one thing like this,” she mentioned.

Legal professionals from the Justice for Harrods Survivors group, who symbolize the accusers of the previous Harrods boss, have praised Gascoigne for her bravery, including they’re “proud to symbolize her and our different survivors as we transfer ahead collectively in our quest for justice”.

The BBC has approached Gascoigne for additional remark.

Al Fayed, who died final 12 months aged 94, is accused of sexual misconduct by a number of girls who labored for him – a lot of whom felt unable to report what had occurred till just lately.

On the time of most of the alleged assaults, the billionaire businessman was the proprietor of Harrods, the Ritz Paris resort and soccer membership Fulham FC.

The BBC heard testimony from greater than 20 feminine ex-employees at Harrods throughout its investigation for the documentary and podcast – Al Fayed: Predator at Harrods.

The documentary, which aired final month, claimed that in Fayed’s possession, Harrods not solely didn’t intervene however helped cowl up abuse allegations.

Responding to the investigation, Harrods’ present house owners mentioned they had been “completely appalled” by the allegations and that his victims had been failed – for which the shop sincerely apologised.

In case you are affected by problems with sexual assault you may contact the BBC Motion Line right here.