Lady Diana – Top Secret

Outside of Ritz, after being overshadowed by a shouting and jostling crowd of autograph seekers and by many onlookers equipped with cameras and video-cameras, as well as the usual paparazzi army, the couple finally manages to get on their Mercedes (not the same Mercedes of the accident, but the one which was used to drive from the airport and throughout that afternoon). Trevor Rees-Jones is driving and next to him there is another agent. A second security vehicle, a Range Rover, is following them, in its driving seat there is bodyguard Kez Wingflield and by his side another agent.

At that moment the four security officers in the two cars have no idea where Dodi wishes to go, and this concerns them and jeopardizes Lady Diana's personal security. Anyway, Dodi's main intention is to take Diana to his private apartment in Rue Arsène-Houssaye, which is situated right before the Triumph Arch, to change his clothes, and later go to dinner with Diana at Chez Benoît Restaurant.

The pressure of the many paparazzi surrounding and constantly chasing the Mercedes with the intention of photographing Diana, plus the traffic jam on Avenue des Champs-Elysées, which stops them continuously, make all passengers very nervous. From this moment on, for Diana and Dodi both, the numerous and cumbersome presence of paparazzi is not welcome anymore.

During that Saturday, August 30, 1997, local radio and TV stations in Paris have broadcast images of the Princess' recent arrival in the capital all day long. All newspapers of Paris, especially the breaking news of Saturday afternoon, reported with capital letters that Diana was in Paris. The Princess was on everyone's lips.

That afternoon, the entire road traffic on Avenue des Champs-Elysées was jammed by an enormous crowd of onlookers. Several radio stations, television channels and a multitude of photographers and paparazzi were constantly busy taking pictures of the Princess while she was in the Mercedes with her companion Dodi Al-Fayed.

1997 Saturday, 30 August 7:10 pm: The deputy head of security Henri Paul, disappears from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm for a break. Perhaps he has simply gone to dinner? “Apart from this book, no other media will ever precisely clarify, where Henri Paul went and what he did” in those three hours.

On the front pages of almost all newspapers and several radio and TV programs, and on the French local newscast, regional and national, it is announced: «Today Princess Diana is in Paris, staying at the Grand Hotel Ritz». As a consequence Place Vendôme is packed with hundreds of people that have joined the paparazzi army. Even at the rear entrance of Ritz, on Rue Cambon, there are paparazzi lurking.

1997 Saturday, August 30, around 7:35 pm: Upon the couple's arrival on Rue Arsène-Houssaye, a further experience awaits them. A mob of onlookers and paparazzi are waiting for them right outside the door of Dodi's apartment. The Mercedes carrying Diana tries to get closer to the main entrance. Apart from the same security agents who travelled with Dodi and Diana, there seems not to be other security men waiting for them, to assist them or to find them a way through the crowd, or a corridor to the entrance.

After parking the vehicle, Trevor Rees-Jones opens the rear door of the Mercedes, Diana gets out, and she has just the time to touch the ground and get up on her own feet, then she is immediately pressed between the mass of people, which touches her and pushes her from every direction.

Suddenly, a photographer emerges out of the agitated mob pushing his way through it, he audaciously rushes towards Diana and Dodi to take pictures of the couple. Some witnesses will later say that it was the paparazzi Romuald Rat, a 25 year old of a bulky and strong build. The two finally manage to enter Dodi's apartment, where they will stay until 9:35 pm.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 9:35 pm: For the couple it is time to dine at Chez Benoît Restaurant, as previously established by the appointment taken that same afternoon at Ritz. They exit the apartment on Rue Arsène-Houssaye and take sit in that same Mercedes that picked them up from the Bourget airport earlier that day. Dodi tells his driver Trevor Rees-Jones, and another bodyguard sitting next to him, to leave in a hurry, but he does not reveal them accurately where he would like to be taken, even the bodyguard Kez Wingfield and the other security agent accompanying them on a second vehicle are aware of it.

The Mercedes dives into the crowd anyway, around Diana's vehicle, again, there is a buzz of pedestrians, cars, motorcycles and scooters chasing them, honking and constantly approaching the car, slamming their hands on the body and on the glasses, taking pictures, shouting the name of Diana and whatnot. Also along the edges of the secondary roads there are groups of people observing this long and noisy parade.

All of a sudden Dodi tells Trevor to go on Avenue des Champs-Elysées. Over here the congestion is even bigger, the Mercedes is surrounded by many curious and it is barely able to move forward. However, Dodi calls the Ritz and orders his utmost faithful employee: Claude Roulet, manager of Hotel Ritz, to notify the Chez Benoît so that they can arrange a welcome with all the honours, fit for the Princess of Wales. Dodi also asks the manager Roulet to call Henry Paul and to reach him immediately.

After ending the call, Dodi refers Trevor to go to Chez Benoît Restaurant, the bistro on Rue Saint Martin. Shortly after, while the Mercedes is still going, with all the traffic problems caused by the screaming crowd around the vehicle, Dodi, taken by surprise by an angry panic attack, seems to want to suddenly change his mind. The situation is completely out of control.

The mob overcrowding the street scream and clap their hands on the roof and the windows of the Mercedes. The car is constantly blocked by pedestrians, by other cars, by onlookers and by paparazzi. Despite the many reversals driving, the Mercedes does not get anywhere.

The chasing by paparazzi with their cars and motorbikes is becoming more and more obstinate and unbearable; therefore, at some point, considering the continuous insistence and strong complaint of Diana, Dodi decides to cancel everything and to go back to the Ritz. The appointment falls through, they will have dinner at Espadon, the luxurious restaurant inside the Ritz.

1997 Saturday, August 30, around 9:45 pm: Some journalists have confirmed the following: «François Tendil, the man in charge of the evening and night security at the Ritz, contacted Henri Paul, who was off duty that night, and asked him to return immediately to the Ritz to join the team of security agents. The reason: Because of the multitude and the aggressiveness of paparazzi and onlookers that hinder every move of the couple, the four bodyguards have difficulty in protecting Princess Diana».

1997 Saturday, August 30, 9:50 pm: In the meantime Diana and Dodi approach the main entrance of Ritz with their car. And even there, the entrance is packed with paparazzi and people who want to touch Diana.

Besides the doorman (piccolò) and François Tendil, the guy in charge of the night security, there is no other agent to welcome and protect the couple escaping from the assault of the crowd. As soon as they get out of the Mercedes, two photographers appear and suddenly rush to Diana, physically sticking to her, annoying, pushing and bothering her, pestering her with their continuous flashes and filming. The situation is way out of control to be able to protect Diana's security, it is a total dangerous chaos. At this point, Dodi snaps in his anger rushing towards the two photographers, pushing them and making them get away from Diana; then, turning to François Tendil he shouts in French: «What are you doing? Not like this, this is shit!».

Then later, Dodi addresses to another bodyguard, Kez Wingfield, who was in the Range Rover driving behind the Mercedes, and, shouting, he scolds him publicly asking: «Why did you not go in front of my Mercedes to clear the passage and to free the way from other vehicles, from the crowds and the sticky paparazzi?»

In fact, Dodi reproaches him for not going ahead, on patrol at the crossroads to clear out the streets, so to identify and prepare the most appropriate areas or lanes that would have permitted the Mercedes to pass freely. «Between saying and doing...» Said Kez Wingfield «None of us agents knew where Dodi intended to go; he was constantly changing direction; we only had the Range Rover to support the Mercedes. There were no other security agents, we were too few».

It was obvious that young Kez Wingfield was very demoralized by the rebuke given by Dodi in front of everyone.

THE RETURN TO THE RITZ HOTEL

Watching the movie that has been broadcast all around the world, filmed by the hotel cameras as they were passing through the revolving door of the main entrance of Ritz, you can respectively glimpse: Dodi, then Diana and finally Trevor Rees-Jones. A sense of distress and irritation is clearly visible on Diana's face, she is annoyed by that Parisian afternoon that she did not even want. They have done all that just to get back to the starting point. Diana does not feel safe with the security service arranged by the young and rich Arabic emir.

Diana probably thought to herself that the protection service was nothing compared to the great safety she could have been provided with the numerous officers of the Parisian police. The Parisian police would have accompanied Diana everywhere and with everyone she would have desired, in the same way they would have acted with Heads of State and Diplomatic Corps.

Diana would have had squadron of armoured cars with several national security agents, policemen and army personnel; these would have initially blocked all intersections of the roads to be crossed with armoured cars, and they would have formed a wall of armed men and armoured vehicles to ensure maximum protection to Diana, both inside and outside of her accommodation. With the police by her side nobody, neither paparazzi nor onlookers would have dared to approach the Princess if she would not have explicitly required.

In reality, the Lady believed and hoped that the Fayeds could offer her enough protection beside wealth, and not only temporarily, but everlasting. The playboy Dodi Al-Fayed, instead, was a young and rich spendthrift, a half junkie with a chaotic temper who loved and practised frivolous and shameless nightlife; therefore he would have not been up to fulfil eventual or controversial tantrums of the Princess. Furthermore Dodi was surrounded by “so called friends” of the late night, dangerous people without any morality or compassion, rich spoiled people wickedly uncontrollable, every wishes of theirs was fulfilled by Dodi.

So Diana found herself in the middle of bad company, she was not even protected morally. Several members of the Ritz personnel stated: «Some of Dodi's alleged business friends were playful, ruthless and without conscience. It is also likely that Diana sensed that they wished to have sex with her, maybe with drugs involved, and that Dodi would have not had any chances nor power to deny and to protect her, so that it would not happen».

Diana was aware of the possible danger, she would have never approved of this sort of free lust and she would absolutely not allow it to happen. From this moment her only goal was to have dinner at the hotel and to go to sleep, fleeing to her luxury suite n° 102, to never get out from Ritz until the day after to leave for London.

Diana was sadly wrong, within two hours unimaginable and uncontrollable things would have happened, strange and ghostly events. The Lady will not even notice of falling into a deadly trap, everything will happen like in a horror demonic thriller bringing only cruelty, pain and violent death.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 9:53 pm: Diana and Dodi are bout to enter in the spacious and elegant lobby of the Ritz. The space of the restaurant is packed full with people, there is not a single table available. Even if Dodi is the owner's son and despite the fact that Diana is the most famous woman in the world, according to what the French maître and the Hotel Ritz Director, Franck Klein, aka Mohamed Al-Fayed's right arm in France, are thinking there is no choice: «If you are not happy to eat standing up or at the bar, you will have to find a different place to eat dinner» (it seemed that Dodi did not have much control in this his hotel). Luckily, a table for the pair was quickly arranged.

Diana goes to one of the many luxurious toilets to rearrange her hair and make up, then she sits on the comfortable chair of her table, in the middle of the bustling and noisy Espadon restaurant. With her eyes looking down, Diana tries to unwind in her own silence.

Between a peek and the other, among the curious customers there are also some children. Sat down right there all alone, Diana shows a terrific body appearence, tanned by the Italian sun, but also very tired and hiding an emotion revealed only by her blue eyes, wet with small tears, drops that are struggling to get out.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:00 pm: The Mercedes with darkened windows that was used to pick up the couple from the airport of Paris and to drive them around the capital in that crowded afternoon, is now parked in front of the main entrance of the Ritz.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:08 pm: In a video recorded by the surveillance camera of the main entrance, you can see Henri Paul (deputy chief of the security) while he was parking his Austin. He is back to work and enters the Ritz. After briefly joining his colleagues (security guards) located on the ground floor at the “Vendôme” bar of the Ritz, Paul reaches Dodi.

In fact, that day Henri Paul should have had a night off. According to our investigators, the reason for which Paul has returned to work is not just to give support to the team of bodyguards, in order to avoid the same pressure that evolved in the presence of the numerous paparazzi and onlookers that afternoon, but it is for the need to report Dodi a vital message regarding the Princess. The recordings from the cameras of the Hotel Ritz show Henri Paul very peaceful, sober and smiling. His steps, his moves and his appearence seem quite normal.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:10 pm: Dodi asks Diana what she would like to eat, however, after placing their order, it becomes noticeable that the eyes of the other customers are fixed upon the couple, and especially upon Diana. She feels embarrassed by those elusive glances of dark nature.

Suddenly Diana expresses Dodi the wish of wanting to retreat in her own room, to have a bit of privacy. Dinner will then be served in their own Imperial suite number 102 of the luxurious Ritz Hotel.

HENRI PAUL'S INFORMATION AND THE TELEPHONE

CALLS THAT CAUSED CONCERN TO DODI

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:20 pm: Henri Paul approaches Dodi in one of the rooms of suite 102 and, confidentially, reveals to him, face-to-face, a piece of news which will disrupt him. Being very formal, Paul refers Dodi to have been contacted by a character, or one of his representatives, however, this person is a very influential man that in this book we will sometimes call: “The French Puppet Master/Collaborator”, his real name is Jean-Pierre Chevènement, and he was the Interior Minister at the time.

Paul's words are: «This afternoon you rejected our welcome and the presidential security vehicles prepared by French Authorities for the Princess of Wales. Furthermore, you have been repeatedly informed about the agreement set in the past between French Authorities and your father. Parisian Authorities have been disappointed and strongly affected by your denial. Although, even if they nourish a bit of resentment as well as displeasure, they have decided to give you another favourable chance».

Paul adds: “Chevènement's exact words were: «Therefore, in order to prevent something bad from happening to someone, we wisely advise you not to dare to come out from the Ritz Hotel with the Princess and to not use your vehicle with your security guards. If you wish to take Lady Diana somewhere in Paris, you need to ask for our vehicles and our security agents at our Parisian Authorities. We will richly provide you all of our support”.

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:40 pm: It is the night of a beautiful and warm day in late summer, we are in a fairly quiet and deserted Paris. The Eiffel Tower entirely lit up rises above the Napoleonic city, and with its 324 meters of height it looks like a massive diamond. Restaurants, bars and bistros are open, shops and their windows spread the light.

There are few vehicles circulating on the roads and a low amount of pedestrians, many Parisians are out of town for the holidays. As opposed to that, outside the main entrance of the Ritz Grand Hotel, overlooking the elegant and vast Place Vendôme, there is a lot people and a bustle of cars, motorcycles, photojournalists, onlookers and many tourists armed with cameras and video-cameras. Everyone is hoping for the Princess to appear at the windowsill, to see her, admire and photograph her.

Dodi and Diana are dining on the first floor of the majestic Imperial Suite of the Ritz, one of the most attractive hotels in the world.

They are both unaware that this it will be the last night of their life, the final dinner of their existence. According to wire-tapping and bugs that were placed in their suite and based on reports from eyewitnesses (the staff of the Ritz), journalists have established what follows: «Between a word and the other with Diana, Dodi makes and receives several phone calls, even from his father».

During the first phone call that he receives, someone announces a first message to him. The minute in which Dodi is aware of this message, his attitude changes, he feels disturbed and very concerned. During the second phone calls he gets, someone is talking about an appointment for that same night. Dodi answers to his interlocutor with an uneasy tone: «Let's talk about it face to face in a quiet place».

Did the content of these phone calls have something to do with the message just received by Henry Paul? Did Dodi have to negotiate an important deal, planned for a long time? Or maybe he had to meet with the same people that were waiting for him at Chez Benoît Restaurant, the bistro on Rue Saint Martin, earlier that afternoon? As we shall see following, the topics of these calls are one of the main keys to the solution of the case on the death of Princess Diana Spencer.

WHERE DID THE COUPLE WANT TO GO AT MIDNIGHT?

In an attempt to answer this question and to give a sense to the rest of the events, many journalists-investigators stated and wrote the following, but incomplete, piece of news: «That Saturday night, at the beginning of the first hour of Sunday, August 31, 1997 the couple left the Ritz because Dodi, for work reasons (a big business), was expected at a specific location and they could get there on their own initiative, using a Hotel service car».

Surely the given address referred to the building of the “Residence Passy Kennedy”, in the XVI Arrondissement of Paris. This Palace, built in the '80s is located on Maison de la Radio, on the Avenue du Prèsident-Kennedy, which extends from the Avenue de New-York along the Seine after the Place de l'Alma. This is also the home of a major consultation agency, which has big companies of the defence industry as clients, such as GIAT Industries, Matra and Thalès.

Other journalists, however, asserted that at 12:20 am the couple walked out of the back of the Ritz promising and making paparazzi believe that, upon request and need of Diana, they would head to Dodi's house first. Many have said that in reality things went simply like this: at 12:20 am the couple stepped out of the back of the Ritz, which is located on Rue Cambon, entered the Mercedes and set off towards the house of Dodi, who is in Rue Arsène-Houssaye near the Arc of Triumph.

They would have wanted to spend the entire night in Al-Fayed apartment and the day after Diana would have left for London. However, according to the investigations of our experts, excluding some details, there is little truth in which was stated above. Anyway, almost all journalists said that the path related to the dynamic of the accident involved the following: from Rue Cambon the Mercedes drove towards Champs Elyseès. While Diana's vehicle stopped in front of the traffic light at Place de la Concorde, Dodi noticed an exaggerated fanaticism and a lot of disturbance by paparazzi pursuers towards the Princess that was on board, and he ordered his driver to leave immediately despite the red light.

Driver Henri Paul, attempted to quickly cross the crowded Place de la Concorde to later turn right and drive towards Champs Elyseès, but it was not possible due to the much traffic (others affirmed that the road was closed) so he chose the straight path ahead of him, the one along the Seine, a two-lanes road. For the Mercedes carrying Diana the malfunctioning brakes, the very high speed and the sudden hard braking under the tunnel were the fatal mix of ingredients which caused the onset of the most dramatic and fatal princely event of the twentieth century.

Where did Dodi and Diana want to go at midnight? The only real answer to this question lies within the following: After Henri Paul gave him the shocking news at 10:20 pm, Dodi began to receive phone calls. A first and a second time Dodi answered to his questioner saying: «We will talk about it later, in a quieter place». Immediately after, Dodi called his father Mohamed Al-Fayed in London.

Al-Fayed senior never wanted to reveal to reporters what his son told him and what was the content of the first telephone message received by Dodi at about 10:40 pm, however this is what he claimed to have told him: «You must absolutely not leave the Ritz, stay there tonight, do not go out... But he never listened».

It was obvious that during all these calls: «Dodi was very upset and barely managed to control his movements and his voice. He even tried to hide the subject of his phone conversations to Diana».

1997 Saturday, August 30, 10:45 pm: Some employees of the Ritz reported the following piece of news: «Shortly after Dodi's phone calls, Diana understood very well both the content of those phone messages and the news that Dodi received from Henri Paul at 10:20 pm. Consequently a state of restlessness and anxiety got hold of her. The Princess quickly realized she had fallen in a serious mess. Overwhelmed by the fear of a potential danger, full of concern but with strong persistence and determination, Diana became decidedly stubborn in wanting to leave immediately for London».

YES, DIANA DEMANDED TO GO BACK TO LONDON

Dodi had no choice. The private jet of Al-Fayed, the Gulfstream 4, was still in Paris, at the airport Le Bourget, the only thing needed was to alert the pilot to be ready for take-off. Presumably, Dodi was the person who phone called the pilot. It was necessary to reach the airport as soon as possible, but in complete secret and without revealing the real destination to anyone.

Dodi called François Tendil, security agent at the Ritz, on the phone telling him to bring Henri Paul, Trevor Rees-Jones e Kez Wingfield to him. Dodi then revealed to the four his plan on how to get out of the Ritz anonymously. YES, Diana had instantly forced Dodi to bring her back to London that night, it was an undeniable and very strict order. Apart from obeying, Dodi did not have any choice.

Therefore, Dodi and the four security agents decided to put in place the following deception, called “the trick of the two cars”:

a) The black Mercedes with darkened windows, the same car used to drive the couple around Paris that afternoon, was parked outside of the main entrance of the Ritz, in Place Vendôme. This was going to be used as a deceiving car driven by its habitual driver, Philippe Dourneau. A camouflaged couple with the appearance of Diana and Dodi was going to get on this car, and they were going to leave together with the Range Rover, driven by Kez Wingfield, backing them up.