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Driver's Role In Diana's Death Studied

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By ROBERT BARR, The Associated Press

Published: October 5, 2007

LONDON - Striking images from a countdown to death: Princess Diana salutes her driver; the driver waves to paparazzi lurking at the back of the Ritz Hotel; officially declared drunk at the time, the driver squats to tie his shoes without so much as a wobble.

These decade-old scenes collected from 31 security cameras at the Ritz Hotel in Paris were shown Thursday to a jury at an inquest that eventually must decide what, if anything, they signify about how the driver, the princess and her boyfriend came to die in a car crash.

Much of the footage presented Thursday showed the growing crowd of photographers and bystanders hoping to see Diana with Dodi Fayed, her latest boyfriend.

The action, however, was at the back of the hotel, where Diana and Fayed are seen standing for seven minutes waiting for their car, his left arm protectively around her waist.

Henri Paul, the driver who died with the couple on Aug. 31, 1997, is seen popping in and out of the service entrance. Minutes before the car arrives, he spots two photographers across the street. Paul waves, and goes back inside.

Once the car arrives, the two jump in, Paul takes the wheel and they are off within seconds, pursued by photographers Serge Benhamou, Jacques Langevin, David Odekerken and Fabrice Chassery.

About 15 minutes later, Paul lost control in the Pont d'Alma tunnel. Bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones was the only survivor.

Paul, the acting head of security at the hotel, is a key figure. French and British police both concluded he had double the legal limit of alcohol in his blood, and lost control of the car as it raced ahead of pursuing photographers.

Fayed's father, Mohamed al Fayed, claims Paul was a paid informer for French and British intelligence services. He disputes that Paul was drunk, believes the blood tests were faked and says Paul was induced to take the route that led to the tunnel.

The jury will go to Paris next week to see the hotel, the tunnel and other locations.

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