Met Police Admits to Data Breach Involving Alleged Al Fayed Victim

A woman who claims she was trafficked to Mohamed Al Fayed and subjected to sexual abuse by his associate has expressed outrage after the Metropolitan Police mistakenly forwarded her confidential personal information to an incorrect recipient.

Joanna Brittan, who resides in Devon, provided a detailed statement to Devon & Cornwall Police in 2017. This testimony, which outlined how she was trafficked to the former owner of Harrods and abused by one of his business partners, was subsequently transferred to the Met. Brittan recently learned that, due to human error, the Met had erroneously sent handwritten notes of her account—along with her home address, date of birth, and phone number—to another alleged victim residing in Australia.

The BBC has been informed that the Information Commissioner’s Office has been notified of the data breach. As an initial measure, a single payment has been offered to Brittan to address the incident.

Criticism of Police Handling

The Metropolitan Police initiated an inquiry into the abuse allegations surrounding Al Fayed in November 2024, a move that came after 21 women had already come forward prior to his death in 2023. Al Fayed passed away without ever facing criminal charges.

Brittan, who chose to waive her statutory right to lifelong anonymity to speak with the BBC, condemned the force’s actions. She described the Met as "shambolic, incompetent and complicit." The data breach occurred shortly after Brittan requested the return of her original statement, a request made by her legal representatives.

This error emerged as Brittan received positive news from the Home Office last month, which confirmed there were "reasonable grounds" to believe she was a victim of modern slavery and trafficking, prompting a further investigation into her case.

Jasvinder Sanghera, the Independent Survivor Advocate appointed by Harrods and a collaborator of Brittan, labeled the breach "absolutely appalling."

"It does not give you confidence in the processes that exist for survivors, neither does it give me confidence in relation to the current operation," Sanghera stated.

Ongoing Investigations and Survivor Support

According to the BBC, Brittan’s initial 2017 report led to a rape allegation against Ahmed Obaidly, a United Arab Emirates diplomat and associate of Al Fayed. She provided additional details in a video-recorded interview in 2020. However, Brittan was later informed that the investigation into Obaidly could not proceed because he died in 2015.

The criminal allegations Brittan made against Al Fayed are now believed to be part of Operation Cornpoppy, the active investigation into individuals who may have facilitated or enabled the former Harrods owner’s offending.

Brittan is among more than 200 alleged survivors of Al Fayed scheduled to participate in a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Wednesday afternoon. Lucy Duckworth, policy lead for The Survivors Trust and chair of the meeting, described the event as a "significant and hard-earned milestone for survivors."

"This must be a turning point and we need to start joining the dots," Duckworth said. "We need to confront ourselves and policymakers with the wider systemic failures that allowed abuse on this scale to occur and persist."

In a separate development, it was confirmed last month that a serving Metropolitan Police officer and four former officers are under investigation for potential misconduct regarding the handling of sexual abuse reports against Al Fayed. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is currently determining whether any current or former officers have, or would have had if still serving, a disciplinary case to answer.

In response to the ongoing scrutiny, the Met stated that its teams have "transformed the way we investigate rape and sexual offences." The force added, "We continue to support all victims and we urge anyone with information, whether they were directly affected by Mohamed Al Fayed's actions or aware of others who may have been involved, or committed offences to come forward."

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this story, help and support is available at BBC Action Line.

Source: BBC News Generated at: 2026-06-03 05:05:47 UTC