Claims of murder have reignited conspiracy theories and encouraged calls for a new inquiry into the death of Princess Diana.
Britain’s Metropolitan Police service is “scoping information that has been received in relation to the deaths and assess its relevance and credibility”, they said in a statement.
An eight-page letter written by the mother-in-law of an army sniper is believed to have come to police in 2011, claiming that the SAS had “arranged Princess Diana’s death” and that it had been “covered up”, the Daily Mail reports.
The claims have been rubbished by the former head of the Met Police, Dai Davies, who was in the role when Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed were killed in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
An inquest into their deaths found the couple had been unlawfully killed due to “gross negligence” of their driver, Henri Paul, who had been drinking, and also blamed paparazzi who pursued the car.
In line with the opinion of many royal commentators and some close to the Royal family, Mr Davies has said he is “mystified” by the latest theory, and firmly believes the crash was “an accident, by any definition”.
“I am absolutely convinced this was an accident so I’m mystified, after 13 years, how any new information can possibly allege anything other than that this was a tragic accident.”
Former bodyguard to Princess Diana, Ken Wharfe, has expressed concerns over the amount of time it has taken Police to investigate the claim.
“The police have to look at it because of the level of the crime alleged,” Wharfe said, going on to express doubt toward the validity of the claims.
The developments have been welcomed by the family of Mr Paul, who also died in the crash.
“We believe there was a plot to kill the Princess that terrible night in August 1997,” Mr Paul’s 83-year-old mother told The Mail.
“We know in our hearts that our son was murdered and we still live with the hope that one day the truth will be known.”
Diana’s sons Prince William and Prince Harry have declined to comment on the latest theory.
After the inquest, the Princes welcomed the jury’s decision and expressed their gratitude to the jury and the medical staff who fought to save their mother’s life.
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