French police have executed a series of raids on properties associated with the late billionaire Mohamed Al Fayed, marking a significant development in an ongoing investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and human trafficking. Arrests made after three properties were searched in relation to inquiry into late businessman.
Among the locations searched in mid-October were the Ritz hotel in Paris’s 1st arrondissement, the Villa Sainte-Thérèse in Saint-Tropez, and the Villa Windsor in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. Notably within the Hotel Ritz in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, as well as at the Villa Sainte-Thérèse in Saint-Tropez, a former property of Mohamed Al Fayed, and at the Villa Windsor in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, in the presence of British investigators.”, the Paris prosecutor’s office said: “Searches and evidence-gathering operations were carried out in mid-October 2026.
According to the Paris public prosecutor’s office, the operation resulted in several individuals being taken into custody for questioning before their subsequent release. The investigation, which is currently ongoing, centers on serious allegations including human trafficking committed by an organized group, aggravated pimping by an organized group, and rape.
British investigators were present during the coordinated operations on October 13 and 14, a detail confirmed by the Metropolitan Police in an email sent to abuse survivors. The Villa Sainte-Thérèse, a prominent site on the French Riviera, is noted for hosting Diana, Princess of Wales, and her sons in 1997. The Villa Windsor, a former home of King Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson, was also subject to the evidence-gathering efforts. One of the most exclusive villas on the French Riviera, and where Diana, Princess of Wales, stayed with her sons in the summer of 1997, at the start of her relationship with Fayed’s son, Dodi, one of the properties that was raided was Castel Sainte-Thérèse in Saint-Tropez.
Survivors have expressed strong support for these police actions. Pelham Spong, who claims she was trafficked under Fayed’s orders in 2008 and later sexually assaulted in London, welcomed the development, stating, “Survivors deserve actions, not words.” Spong previously reported to French authorities that Fayed had forcibly kissed her and offered a salary increase in exchange for sexual favors. She told French investigators from the Central Office for the Repression of Human Trafficking that Fayed, who owned the Ritz hotel in Paris, had forcibly kissed her and offered her a salary of € 65,000 a year if she slept with him, last November.
Groups representing those affected by the alleged abuse are now calling for heightened scrutiny in the United Kingdom. Co-chairs of Justice for Fayed and Harrods Survivors, Jen Mills and Lindsay Mason, urged authorities to apply similar thoroughness to properties located in Britain. They emphasized that the international searches should be viewed as only the beginning of a broader accountability process.
A spokesperson for the survivor collective No One Above stated that the move by French authorities to involve a specialist trafficking unit confirms the nature of the allegations as part of an organized criminal network. The group argued that the Metropolitan Police should have treated the case as a systemic issue from the start, suggesting that the National Crime Agency should lead the investigation moving forward. The Met has avoided treating it as what France recognised from the outset: organised trafficking by a network, for two years.
Official records from advocacy groups indicate that more than 500 women have come forward with allegations of abuse occurring across various locations previously owned by Fayed, including Harrods, Park Lane, and Fulham football club. The Metropolitan Police currently reports that it is actively investigating 169 victims who have filed direct complaints.
In response to the developments, the management of the Ritz Paris issued a statement declaring that the hotel does not tolerate any form of inappropriate behavior or harassment. The establishment further affirmed its commitment to cooperating fully with judicial authorities as the inquiry proceeds.
