Diana ‘comforter’ is top Paris thief
A Frenchman who claimed to have held Diana, Princess of Wales's hand as she uttered her last words was today exposed as a career criminal.
Abdelatif Redjil, described by a French police source as a "break-in ace" was in a cell, suspected of plundering a string of Paris cash machines of thousands of pounds.
Nicknamed Goldfingers and the Locksmith, he had been on the run for a month after being given a prison sentence for stealing two Picasso paintings worth £45 million from the Paris home of Diana Widmaier-Picasso, the artists's granddaughter.
Self-styled businessman Redjil was a key witness in the long investigation into Diana's death in the crash which also claimed the lives of her boyfriend Dodi Fayed and their driver Henri Paul in 1997.
Redjil claimed he tried to comfort Diana in the back of her wrecked Mercedes, telling her in English: "Don't worry," as she repeated: "My God, my God."
He also claimed to have heard paparazzi accusing each other of causing the accident — allegations which eventually saw the inquest jury partially blame photographers along with Henri Paul.
"He gave evidence which has been reported as fact for years, but nobody knew anything about his life as a criminal," said a police source.
"He is a break-in expert who can enter a secure building without leaving any trace at all."
