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Thursday, January 1, 1998 Published at 11:44 GMT
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image: [ BBC Correspondent: Kevin Connolly ]Kevin Connolly
Paris
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In France, more details have emerged from the police inquiry into the road accident which killed Diana Princess of Wales four months ago. A leaked report in the newspaper Le Parisien this morning says detectives have statements from two witnesses who saw a white Fiat Uno being driven erratically near the scene of the accident. The witnesses came forward three weeks after the crash, but this is the first time the police have given details of what they said. Our Paris correspondent Kevin Connolly reports:

It's been known for weeks that French police believed a second car, probably a white Fiat Uno, played some sort of role in the accident which killed the Princess of Wales, Dodi al-Fayed and the chauffeur of their Mercedes, Henri Paul. Until now it seemed that theory was based on evidence found at the scene, including shards of glass from a broken headlight.

But in a report to the investigating magistrate, police are also said to quote two witnesses, named only as "Francoise" and "Valerie", who were driving along nearby and saw a white Uno zigzagging out of the tunnel. It was driven by a brown-haired man and they say there was a large dog in the back seat, which they noticed as the Uno's driver cut in front of them, glancing behind him repeatedly.

The publication of these details doesn't really advance the inquiry. Police have so far traced only about 10% of the 40,000 or so Unos which answer the description.

The search for the missing car has been criticized as being too slow and too expensive, and it seems police still believe the main factors in the accident are the speed at which the Princess's car was travelling and the fact that the chauffeur had been drinking heavily.


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