I was the Harrods doctor but refused to carry out sexual health tests

A former in-house Harrods doctor who worked there during 'predatory' Mohammed Al-Fayed's reign says she refused to perform sexual health tests on potential victims.

Al-Fayed, who died last year aged 94, has been accused of a litany of sex crimes against dozens of women, some as young as 15, during the years he owned London's most prestigious department store.  

More than 20 former Harrods' staff accused him of sexual assault, including rape, and the Met Police have since announced they are now investigating 40 new allegations, bringing the total number of women who have complained to over 60.

The notorious germophobe is accused of ordering young female staff members whom he found attractive to undergo 'invasive' STD tests, with the results sent to him.

Dr Jenny Duckham, 78, ran the occupational health department when Al-Fayed bought the store in 1985.

She told The Times that human resources team 'sidled in' and asked her if she would carry out 'gynaecological tests' on women soon after he took over the store.

Dr Duckham said she replied 'absolutely not. Why?' and HR said told her not to worry and they would 'deal with it'.

'I heard that he sent them out of the store, he would pay those doctors outside to do the tests,' she said.

'I thought he was a dirty old man… I just thought the man was horrible and crazy and what do you do, really? The atmosphere was pretty c**p.' 

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EXCLUSIVE
I performed sexual health tests on a young woman who worked for Harrods predator Mohamed Al Fayed

Dr Duckham claimed that everyone 'knew he was unsafe' and the person who asked her to do the tests asked in a way which hinted they knew it was 'inappropriate'.

She said that by refusing to do the test, she believed 'it would shut it down' but now thinks it was 'extremely naive of me'. But she explained she had 'no idea' about the extent of his behaviour.

She said Al-Fayed had a 'little empire with locked doors on the top floor' of the building, but still fondly recalls the store as being like 'Aladdin's cave'.

After she was sacked in 1991, she shredded her confidential staff notes because she was afraid Al-Fayed might read them.

Dr Duckham recalled other disturbing stories about Al-Fayed telling staff to take out a 'black face' and to 'pay them off'.

Three doctors have been named publicly by survivors as having allegedly administered sexual health tests for the former Harrods boss.

Dr Ann Coxon, 84, who is still practising in Harley Street, denied giving tests.

She is alleged to have carried out 'invasive' and 'wholly unnecessary' STD checks at the bequest of the disgraced billionaire.

The doctor, who still runs a clinic on London's prestigious Harley Street, was named by victims of Fayed.

But last week when asked if she regretted working for the alleged sexual predator, she replied: 'No, I don't.'

One of Fayed's victims, who is part of the Justice for Harrods survivors group, has told the BBC the 'examinations carried out by Dr Coxon were intrusive and wholly unnecessary'.

'They also resulted in many employees' confidential medical information - including my own - being inappropriately shared within Harrods,' the victim added.

'This should not have happened.'

The victims' group has reported Dr Coxon to the UK medical regulator, the General Medical Council.

Hired as a PA to Al-Fayed, Lindsay, now 55, was told she needed to see a doctor before starting work.

The Mail on Sunday was told that Dr Thomas Bozek, 75, who is also still practising, gave her an an 'invasive examination'.

Wendy Snell, another doctor named by the alleged victims, died.

Dr Duckham said: 'It was awful. Am I sorry? Well, I'm very sad for these girls.' 

She wants the GMC to investigate doctors alleged to have given these tests who are still practising, calling it 'astonishing' that anyone would agree to it.

An Aussie doctor who allegedly performed the sexual health tests has denied claims she did so at his request, insisting that even if she had tested Harrods staff she would never have shared their details with the predatory billionaire.

Dr Jane Reffell allegedly performed an 'exhaustive gynaecological examination' on a young lawyer who was hand-picked to work for Fayed in in 1989 because of her good looks.

The seedy billionaire would later make repeated sexual advances towards the lawyer then aged 25, forcing her to lock herself in the bathroom of his Paris suite.

Daily Mail Australia tracked down Dr Reffell to the sleepy village of Bangalow in NSW's Northern Rivers region, about 15 minutes inland from hippy hangout Byron Bay, where she has run a women's health practice since 2002.

Journalist Tom Bowers' book alleged Dr Reffell 'understood what Fayed required', which was for his female staff to have a clean bill of sexual health before he preyed on them.

However, Dr Reffell vehemently denied ever playing such a role.

'I just don't believe it was me,' she told this publication.

'There are other doctors that worked very closely with Fayed but I didn't.'

When pressed on whether she had ever performed a sexual health test on a Harrods employee, Dr Reffell said: 'I did do tests but it was on a private, confidential basis.

'And I never did them for Al Fayed per se but I might have done them for his staff if they were patients of the practice.'

Dr Reffell said that the sharing of a patient's confidential information was a 'red line' she would never cross.

She said she was 'horrified' by the revelations and expressed sympathy for Fayed's victims.