Diana Inquest: Paparazzo Told Police 'Henri Paul Was Drunk'
Written by Joanne Leyland
Monday, 10 March 2008
The inquest into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales
and Dodi Fayed has heard details of a statement from 1997 in which a
paparazzi photographer told police that he believed the couple's
driver, Henri Paul, was "drunk".
Serge
Benhamou has refused to appear at the official British inquest into the
deaths of Diana and Dodi, meaning his evidence comes from statements
which were given to investigating officers on September 4th 1997 - four
days after the crash which also killed Henri Paul.
Mr Benhamou told police that
the acting head of security at the Ritz hotel "was not his usual self", continuing:
"He must have been drinking. I believe that he was drinking."
Supporting claims already made at the inquest that Henri Paul was teasing
photographers and even alerting them as to when they could expect Diana and Dodi to appear at the rear exit of the Ritz Hotel, the photographer told police that Paul was smiling and cheerful and even slightly
"thumbing his nose".
Determined to avoid the attentions of the paparazzi, Dodi and his father, Mohamed Al Fayed, had been in phone contact earlier in the night, the result of which was an ultimately ill-fated plan which saw Diana and her boyfriend leave the Ritz hotel from the rear exist as part of an attempt to outwit the paparazzi with a decoy vehicle which left from the front.
Recalling the behaviour of Mr Paul, the paparazzo continued in his original police statement: "I would add that the man never acted like that
before".
"I am positive that the man described as being from the security
department at the Ritz appeared to be drinking and is indeed the same one that
took the wheel of the Mercedes at the rear of the hotel."
The inquest is due to be presented with further police
witness statements from members of the paparazzi who were in Paris on the night
of the crash of August 31st 1997, all of whom have refused to appear
either via video link or in person at the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
“Anti-gay stance hits YouTube 1:58 An Oklahoma lawmaker's anti-gay comments are attracting national attention. KWTV reports. U.S. News - Headlines, Stories and Video from CNN.com”
Imagine anyone who looks gay, is gay, or someone wants a reason to get a social advantage of a person, can invade someone’s privacy and accuse them of being gay.
There needs to be protection against public defamation, not just privacy. Yesterday it is Iraq, today people assumed to be gay, then who is next?
"people are by nature fickle, and it is easy to persuade them of something, but difficult to keep them persuaded." - Niccolo Machiavelli
"A prince should therefore have no other aim or thought, nor take up any other thing for his study but war and it organization and discipline, for that is the only art that is necessary to one who commands". - Niccolo Machiavelli
Command a funny word. Sort of like commandment, one being "thou shall not kill".
Name: Emily Elizabeth Windsor-Cragg
Comment: There has been a great deal of evidence to show that Mr. Paul's lab results were incorrect and faked and that his behavior was consistent with being sober.
Perhaps the reason Serge refused to show up at the Inquest is that he lied in the first place.
There seems to be a lot of that going around these days, a lot of obfuscating and a lot of avoidance.
