The man who ran a controversial private investigation into the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed has died, taking “some secrets to the grave”.
John Macnamara was a Met Detective Chief Superintendent before becoming head of security for Dodi’s dad Mohamed Al-Fayed.
Macnamara arrived in Paris on the morning of the fatal crash in August 1997 and led a probe which ran parallel to the official inquiry.
Following his death, aged 83, a friend told the Mirror the case had a “deep impact”on the final years of Macnamara’s life.
He said: “The manner in which the investigations in both France and the UK were conducted was a source of constant dismay and frustration to him.
“It definitely left a scar.
“He was scarred for life by it.”
In 2008, at an inquest into the deaths of Diana, 36, Dodi, 42, and driver Henri Paul, 41, Macnamara clashed with the coroner after admitting he had initially lied about the amount Henri Paul had drunk that night, and whether Diana was pregnant when she died.
Lord Justice Scott Baker asked Macnamara: “If you are telling lies on some occasions, how can they {the jury} tell if you are telling the truth on others?” He replied: “I have come here to tell the truth”.
Macnamara had also clashed with police over their investigation.
The friend said: “The preservation and assessment of evidence relating to the crash scene, the wrecked Mercedes and the driver’s blood samples were an utter mess, and vital leads were completely ignored.
"It deeply impacted his later years. He has taken some secrets to the grave, but much is now available.
“I asked him once if he would ever return to Paris.
He replied, ‘No, why would I go back – the memories are too painful. Before the crash I had happy memories of Paris, not now’. John was an honourable man and unwavering in his account.”
Macnamara had been suffering from progressive supranuclear palsy.
His family have set up a fund-raising website in his memory.
