Diana. The truth about his death
The accident
The first two police officers to arrive at the scene discover a daunting scene under the Alma tunnel. Flashes pierce the darkness. Vehicles are parked in all directions, the roar of a blocked horn piercing the cloud of exhaust fumes. Motorists stop near a gutted car, which has been stranded against the flow along a wall. But what amazes them is the incomprehensible ballet of a dozen photographers strafing the wreckage. A primitive scene that will immediately orient the investigation.
The first testimonies, collected in haste, point to the photographers as directly responsible for the accident: they would have embarrassed the driver by running the car, by trying to slow him down and by blinding him with their flashes. The death of Diana at the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital, four hours after the accident, forced the French government and the prosecution to seize the criminal squad. Dodi Al-Fayed and Henri Paul were killed instantly; only Trevor Rees-Jones remains alive, despite serious facial injuries.
The War of Wales is not over
Desolation invaded the kingdom, which followed with delight the turbulent existence of the princess of hearts. The most spectacular manifestation of this piety is the tide of flowers. A floral tsunami swells in front of Buckingham Palace, transforming, over time, into criticism of the Queen's behavior.
Relations between Princess Diana and the monarchy have continued to deteriorate. The separation has been pronounced since 1992. But in 1995, in an incredible BBC confession interview, Diana expressed her doubts about Charles's ability to become King of England. She also publicly questions monarchical succession - and a thousand years of history! The Queen allows her son to ask for a divorce, which is pronounced in August 1996. Diana, stripped of her titles and predicates, keeps the honorary distinction of Princess of Wales, a tidy pension and the use of the apartments of Kensington Palace. His abrupt disappearance does not alleviate royal resentment. On the day of the accident, Elizabeth II ordered that her name not be mentioned during Sunday service in Balmoral, despite the presence of her two grandsons. In London, when all flags are half mast at the initiative of young Labor Prime Minister Tony Blair, the castle mast remains bare.
Investigation
Quai des Orfèvres, the inspectors of the criminal brigade led by Martine Monteil carry out the first interrogations. Six photographers and a press biker were arrested under the tunnel. Turns out there were many more taking photos, but the rest scampered off as the Bac 75 vehicles approached overnight. Christian Martinez (Angeli), Romuald Rat (Gamma), Jacques Langevin (Sygma), Serge Arnal (Stills Press), Lazlo Veres (independent) and Nicolas Arsov (Sipa) represent almost all French press agencies, including the three more prestigious. They are suspected of "failing to assist a person in danger, endangering the life of others and manslaughter". Diana's full brother - with whom she was estranged - Count Charles Spencer is leading the charge.
The suspicions are serious enough to require the appointment of an investigating judge, Hervé Stéphan. From concordant interrogations, it emerges that at the time of the crash no paparazzi were under the tunnel and near the limousine. They were all "dropped" at the red light in Place de la Concorde by a departure on the hats of the driver of the Mercedes. In addition, several witnesses report the excessive speed of the car on the expressway. Investigators also learn that the Mercedes S 280 is not the vehicle in which Diana and Dodi motorcade during the day. Wanting to fool the paparazzi, Dodi demanded another limousine at the last moment. She picked them up at the back door of the Ritz, rue Cambon, while the first procession served as a decoy in front of the hotel's main entrance. This Mercedes is owned by Jean-François Musa, manager of Etoile Limousine, a small rental company that works exclusively for the Ritz. Dodi asked Henri Paul, the palace's security director, to take the wheel, although he did not hold the large discount driver's license. The Crim ’decides to focus its investigation on the late Henri Paul.
The suspicions are serious enough to require the appointment of an investigating judge, Hervé Stéphan. From concordant interrogations, it emerges that at the time of the crash no paparazzi were under the tunnel and near the limousine. They were all "dropped" at the red light in Place de la Concorde by a departure on the hats of the driver of the Mercedes. In addition, several witnesses report the excessive speed of the car on the expressway. Investigators also learn that the Mercedes S 280 is not the vehicle in which Diana and Dodi motorcade during the day. Wanting to fool the paparazzi, Dodi demanded another limousine at the last moment. She picked them up at the back door of the Ritz, rue Cambon, while the first procession served as a decoy in front of the hotel's main entrance. This Mercedes is owned by Jean-François Musa, manager of Etoile Limousine, a small rental company that works exclusively for the Ritz. Dodi asked Henri Paul, the palace's security director, to take the wheel, although he did not hold the large discount driver's license. The Crim ’decides to focus its investigation on the late Henri Paul.
Mr. Paul's secret
Blood tests kept at the Forensic Institute leave no room for doubt: The Ritz’s security director drove under the influence of alcohol, at a concentration more than three times the legal rate. Judge Stéphan immediately ordered a second opinion in his presence, which would make it possible to refine the results. The blood alcohol level reached 1.74 grams per liter and, in addition, toxicological analysis revealed the presence, at therapeutic doses, of three medicinal substances (fluoxetine, norfluoxetine, tiapride). Henri Paul was taking antidepressants and neuroleptics, products which, combined with alcohol, "impair alertness and can make driving dangerous", concludes Dr. Pépin's report. The personality survey will show that Henri Paul was buying prescription Prozac, Noctamide and two other drugs to help with alcohol withdrawal. He was followed by a doctor living in Brittany, a childhood friend who will confirm that she was treating him for an alcoholism problem, following a depression caused by a sentimental disappointment. Investigations at the Ritz will show that, after leaving the palace at the end of the afternoon, Henri Paul had returned there in the evening to join two bodyguards who were dining at the bar, and to be offered two Ricards. In his defense, he could not have known that, around 11:30 p.m., Dodi would summon him to order him to get behind the wheel of the substitute Mercedes. The British popular press hastened to headline: “Diana's driver was drunk! The responsibility of the Ritz is directly mentioned, which strongly annoys Mohamed Al-Fayed.
Mohamed Al-Fayed's allegations
The response of the owner of the palace will be sudden and brutal. He outright denies the results of the analyzes. In a public statement and press interviews, he claims the vials of blood were exchanged at the Forensic Institute by agents of MI6, the British intelligence service. Why ? Because MI6 wanted to camouflage an attack as an accident! How? 'Or' What ? On the instruction of Prince Philip, "a Nazi sympathizer" who had decided to make Princess Diana disappear! Why ? Diana was pregnant with her "dear son Dodi", who was to marry her. The Crown did not want the future King of England to have a Muslim stepfather (himself)!
These allegations, however extravagant they are, have the merit of raising a smokescreen that obscures Al-Fayed’s own responsibilities. Can we believe his remorse? It's hard to forget that he drew Diana to Saint-Tropez to throw her into the arms of his son playboy, that he organized his publicized visit to the Ritz and that it was when leaving the palace, in a car from the Ritz, driven by a Ritz employee, that they died. The assertions made by Al-Fayed, helped by a cohort of private investigators, tenors of the bar and a strong communication service, will enchant conspiracy sites and pollute the investigation of the Criminal and Judge Stéphan, forced to demonstrate that this traffic accident was not the result of sabotage or an attack. The British will resolve six years later to conduct an investigation, "Inquiry into the allegation of conspiracy to murder", which will cost a lot of effort, time and money (4 million pounds) to reach the same conclusions as the French survey. Princess Diana died because the car was going too fast, the driver had been drinking alcohol and she had not put on her seat belt.
The Fiat Uno and the man with the dog
During the controversy, the investigation continues. And progresses. From small pieces of red plastic found under the tunnel, the Criminal Research Institute of the National Gendarmerie (IRCGN) succeeded in reconstructing the rear headlight of a Fiat Uno, belonging to a series built between 1983 and August 1987. Other experts have identified suspicious remains of white paint on the Mercedes' right side. By analyzing the traces of braking and body parts found at the entrance to the tunnel, experts conclude that there was a collision between the Mercedes and the Fiat, just before the accident. They deliver their conclusions on September 18 to Judge Stéphan. Only one indirect testimony mentions the erratic driving of such a white car: it surprised a couple of motorists entering the expressway after the tunnel. The Dauzonne couple, summoned to the Quai des Orfèvres, confirm that the driver of a white Fiat Uno, exiting the Alma tunnel at 12:32 am, was driving at very low speed, his eyes riveted on his rear-view mirror. The license plate bore the West Parisian numbers, 78 or 92. A large dog was in the rear. A gigantic hunt for the Uno is on. Almost 5,000 automobiles meet the criteria. Police stations and gendarmeries are mobilized, as well as thirty Crim inspectors. On November 13, a 22-year-old young man, Le Van Thanh, was arrested by the GIGN and his dogs impounded. On the evening of the accident, he was supposed to be in Gennevilliers in a parking lot he was guarding. He awkwardly had his white Fiat Uno repainted red, and he is formally identified by Sabine Dauzonne as the man with the dog.
The Fiat Uno, which was driving in the right-hand lane of the tunnel, was caught in the rear by the speeding Mercedes, as evidenced by the braking marks. It was while trying to right his vehicle after the collision that Mr. Paul lost control and crashed into the center pillar. The driver of the Fiat Uno, struck from behind, was therefore not the person responsible for the accident but his collateral victim. Besides, he is neither a paparazzi nor an MI6 agent! His escape was due to panic after the collision. His name will disappear from the proceedings. Officially, the driver of the Fiat Uno has not been found, but the search is halted.
The mystery of the Mercedes S 280
On September 3, 1999, Judge Stéphan issued an order dismissing the photographers. He denounces the driver's alcoholism and the excessive speed of the car as "certain causes" of the accident. It excludes any "voluntary act", specifying "that no element, even imprecise, of any nature whatsoever, has come to give any credence to such a thesis". This is the answer to Al-Fayed's claims. Sir Stevens’s British investigation, which opened in 2004, reached similar conclusions in 2008.
However, neither of the two particularly thorough investigations focused on the origin of the Mercedes S 280 in which Diana was killed. Jean-François Musa, the manager of Etoile Limousine, declared on September 1, 1997, on PV, to Lieutenant Delbreilh: "I bought it second-hand on August 30, 1996 at the Mercedes-Austerlitz garage. It was the personal car of the director of Mercedes France. She only had 11,000 kilometers on the clock. "An origin that has not been verified by the Crim" or the British police.
The investigation led by Pascal Rostain, Bruno Mouron and Jean-Michel Caradech, published in the book "Qui a killed lady Di?" », Reveals the suspicious origins of this car. The alleged "employee's vehicle" bought in good faith by the manager of Etoile Limousine has never satisfied him: it has stability faults when it picks up speed. Karim Kazi, an experienced driver of discount cars, also notes that the Mercedes becomes “unpredictable” on long journeys. The S 280 is returned twice to the Mercedes workshop in Saint-Ouen for checking of parallelism, steering and shock absorbers. In vain.
Found after a theft in April 1997, the Mercedes spent a month in the garage to reconstruct the accessories of which it was stripped. The problems remain and Musa gets angry. He sends a registered letter to the Mercedes garage, demanding that it be repaired again. We are two months before the accident.
The investigation identified the original owner of the Mercedes. This is not the "director of Mercedes France", but Eric Bousquet, director of the advertising agency Business. The story he tells is disturbing. He bought the car new in September 1994. Three months later his driver was carjacked. The car is recovered by the gendarmes, planted in the middle of a field near Roissy. Crushed bodywork, broken windows, filled with earth… She obviously rolled over several times. Eric Bousquet then refused to have it repaired, as offered by the insurance, and demanded reimbursement. Declared a wreck, the car was scrapped to be sold for scrap. Eric Bousquet no longer thinks of hearing about it when, in 2005, two French police inspectors come to question him at his home, at the request of the British police to check the chassis number. Bousquet learns that his "wreck" is the limousine involved in Diana's death.
This information will not be considered important enough to be communicated to the British! They make no mention of it in their report. Another enigma: how could a vehicle, probably "restored" by a wrecker, end up, dapper, at a Mercedes dealership?
We thought we had read, seen, heard everything about the Alma accident. These latest revelations should, twenty years later, definitively close the Diana case by adding a codicil to the conclusions of the investigation: how a princess, promised to become Queen of England, absurdly ended her life alongside a playboy, in a degraded car, driven by a drunk driver.
