Fayed dismisses 'shocking' probe

UK Daily Express
Dec. 15, 2006

Mohamed al Fayed has insisted he would not accept a "shocking" police probe which concludes that the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, was an accident.

Mr al Fayed said he was "the only person who knows the truth" about the death of Diana and his son Dodi in 1997.

Former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens was presenting the findings of his three-year investigation at a press conference in central London later on Thursday.

Lord Stevens is expected to rule out various conspiracy theories about the crash, including Mr al Fayed's claims that it was caused deliberately by the British establishment.

Mr al Fayed, who owns Harrods, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "How can I accept something really shocking?.I know deep in my heart that I'm the only person who knows the truth."

Conspiracy theories have alleged that the death of the couple in a car crash in Paris was murder. But the inquiry is widely predicted to say that the Princess and Dodi died as a result of an accident caused by drunk chauffeur Henri Paul.

Mr al Fayed hit out at Lord Stevens - whose appointment he initially welcomed - saying the detective had spent Ł5 million of taxpayers' money "wasting my time".

He claimed Lord Stevens had "betrayed" him and the country, and "done all that the intelligence wanted him to do" - referring to previous claims that British spies were involved in the crash.

"I am the only person who was close to Diana and to my son," Mr al Fayed said. "She had no family. She have friends that pretend they were her friends."

Asked what grounds he had for disputing the report's expected findings, he responded that "the evidence is made up just to make it convenient for the terrorist and the gangster who murdered my son".