Yorkshire man among four people cleared of robbing Mohamed Al Fayed's son
A Yorkshire man and Mohamed Al Fayed’s daughter are among four people who have been cleared of robbing the late businessman’s son of his phone after the prosecution offered no evidence.
Camilla Fayed, 39, previously pleaded not guilty to robbing Omar Fayed of his £1,900 iPhone in the gym of the family’s Grade I listed estate, Barrow Green Court, near Oxted in Surrey, on May 18 2020.
She was accused of a single count of robbery alongside her husband Mohamad Esreb, 44, Matthew Littlewood, 35, and Andrew Bott, 52, in relation to the same alleged incident.
Mr Esreb and Mr Bott pleaded not guilty to the charge at a hearing in May, and Mr Littlewood denied the count at the beginning of a hearing at Guildford Crown Court on Wednesday.
A trial was due to start in February next year but on Wednesday the prosecution offered no evidence in respect of all the defendants.
Prosecutor Eloise Marshall KC told the court: “I advised the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) on quite a number of issues and ultimately the decision was made due to a combination of factors.”
Ms Marshall said there were difficulties around “material provided directly from the complainant himself”.
Judge Patricia Lees said: “In those circumstances then the court will enter not guilty verdicts in respect of each defendant.
“As far as they are concerned they are discharged from the court.”
Ms Fayed, of Park Lane, central London, did not attend the hearing on Wednesday but Mr Esreb, also of Park Lane, Mr Littlewood, of Haydock Road, Colburn, North Yorkshire, and Mr Bott, of Coppice Wood, County Durham, appeared via a video link.
Former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed died last year at the age of 94.
After his death, allegations emerged accusing the late businessman of sexually abusing women, many of which had been employees at Harrods.