Mohamed Al Fayed, the Egyptian businessman who began his career selling drinks on the streets of Alexandria and amassed a fortune that included some of Britain’s most storied assets, has died. He was 94.
The Guardian and other UK newspapers reported his death, with few details immediately available. The Daily Mail said he died on Thursday and that a funeral service was held at London Central Mosque in Regent’s Park on Friday.
It was an abrupt reversal for Al Fayed, a onetime royalist of sorts who craved the respect of the British aristocracy. He accused the royal family of wanting to “get rid” of Diana and maintained for years a conspiracy that the crash was instigated by the Duke of Edinburgh and other royals to murder her. His claims were dismissed after an 11-year inquest concluded with a 2008 jury ruling that the accident was caused by grossly negligent driving.
He began investing in UK companies in the 1960s after relocating a shipping company he’d founded with his brother from Egypt to Europe. He served as a financial adviser to the Sultan of Brunei and once attempted to cut oil deals with Haitian dictator Jean-Claude “Papa Doc” Duvalier. He was married for a time to Samira Khashoggi, the sister of Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, for whom he once worked negotiating contracts.
He invested in restaurants at the luxury emporium, opened other Harrods-brand stores including at London’s Heathrow airport and created an Egyptian room in which two statues of himself were displayed alongside memorials to Dodi and Diana. He also introduced a dress code, leading the store to turn shoppers away for wearing shorts, flip flops or scruffy clothing.As owner of Fulham FC from 1997 to 2013, he was credited with turning around the Premier League football club’s fortunes.
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