Jury Flies to Paris to Investigate Princess Diana's Death

An inquest into Princess Diana's death will cost the British millions.

ByABC News via logo
February 12, 2009, 4:29 PM

Oct. 8, 2007 — -- A decade later, despite several investigations into the car crash that killed her, the mystery surrounding Princess Diana's death remains.

As part of the latest inquest, an 11-member jury flew to Paris on a private jet with no expenses spared in an investigation that will cost the British more than $20 million.

The jury likely will speak with jeweler Alberto Repossi, who this morning claimed a ring he sold to Diana's companion Dodi al Fayed was an engagement ring. He added that Fayed planned to give the ring to Diana the night they died. Repossi now accuses British police of pressuring him to change his story.

The investigation has become so intense that while in Paris, the six men and five women on the jury will be protected by an armed anti-terrorist squad and 200 riot police.

The jury hopes to bring clarity to those who believe the tragic accident that killed Diana was no accident at all.

"It's a coverup, yeah," said a London woman who asked not to be identified. "And most British people think it's a coverup."

During the visit, the jury will follow the journey the princess took that fateful night. It will retrace the doomed lovers' final moments, ending at the crash site.

Prior to this trip, the jury was shown previously unseen images of Diana just moments before the tragedy. The images showed bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones in the front seat of the car that crashed, right in front of Diana.

Rees-Jones was the only survivor of the deadly crash, which occurred when the princess's limo smashed into the 13th pillar in the Alma Tunnel.

Some suspect the driver was trying to outrun paparazzi. But the lone survivor has yet to provide any insight on that night.

"I don't remember anything of the journey at all," Rees-Jones said. "I don't remember anything from that point until I woke up two weeks later."

Despite Rees-Jones' statement, the French and British police concluded that Diana's driver was drunk and that his inebriation contributed to the crash.

Yet some questions remain. Some wonder if the limo was nudged, possible by a white car, and if the driver of that car was an intelligence agent.