Former Harrods director Jon Brilliant has claimed he was handed envelopes of cash by its previous owner Mohamed Al Fayed in an attempt to control him.
Brilliant, who worked in Al Fayed’s private office for 18 months, told the BBC that the former owner would sack those he could not control.
He said he was one of those that Al Fayed had targeted and was handed as much as £39,000 in cash over the course of his employment to try to control him.
“He tried to own you. And ultimately, I got fired because I couldn’t be bought,” Brilliant claimed.
Related Story
“He was trying to get you to come back and say ‘Oh, I spent money on drugs or I spent money frolicking, doing something that I shouldn’t have been doing’, and that he would then use that information against you if you should ever turn on him … I am certainly aware of people who … succumbed to the temptation.”
Brilliant told the publication about surveillance, sackings of senior staff and a culture designed to keep them from trusting or communicating with each another.
“I 100% can see how the management structure and culture was set up to cover [Fayed’s abuse] up, mask it from people,” he claimed.
Harrods has been contacted for comment.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
