Harrods Sues Tabloid Over Sex-for-Sale Story

Harrods, the fashionable London department store, said Friday it is suing a mass-circulation British newspaper for alleging that some women working at its perfume counters sold sex to customers.

The tabloid Daily Mirror published stories on its front page alleging that free-lance salesgirls, hired through agencies and not directly employed by Harrods, were paid up to $1,820 a day in cash and gold jewelry to join sex and drugs parties.

“Harrods has now concluded its internal investigation into the allegations,” the store said in a statement.

“Harrods has issued legal proceedings against the Mirror Group Newspapers 1986 Ltd. in respect of features which appeared in the June 8 and 9, 1988, editions,” it added, without giving further details.

A spokesman for the Mirror said,”We stand by our story.”