British coroner to probe Dodi Fayed's death

LONDON -- A British coroner is preparing an inquest into the death of Dodi Fayed, six years after he was killed along with Princess Diana when their car crashed in a Paris tunnel, authorities said Friday.

Michael Burgess, the coroner for Surrey County south of London where Fayed lived, had yet to set a date for the inquest, said a spokesman for Surrey County Council.

He added that Burgess, who is also the coroner to the royal household, had not indicated he would look into Diana's death.

"He has not told us that he's making any preparations into Diana's death," said the spokesman, Tim Edwards. He said Burgess was conducting the inquest into Fayed's death in his capacity as Surrey coroner.

Buckingham Palace said that since British law requires an inquest to be conducted here into the death of any Briton overseas, an investigation into Diana's death would be held eventually.

No date has been set, a palace spokeswoman said, adding that Burgess, as royal coroner, would be the one to investigate the princess's death.

Diana, Fayed, and chauffeur Henri Paul died in a high-speed car crash in a Paris traffic tunnel on Aug. 31, 1997, as their Mercedes was pursued by paparazzi on motorbikes.

Fayed was the son of Harrods department store owner Mohammed al Fayed.

Asked why it had taken six years for an inquest to be called, Edwards said it was a "complex case," but also said that Fayed's father had been pressing for an inquest.

Mohammed al Fayed has suggested the deaths of his son and Diana were a murder conspiracy plotted by people who disapproved of their relationship. The Egyptian-born tycoon also has alleged a cover-up in the circumstances of the crash.

Mohammed al Fayed said he had still received no indication of when the inquest into Dodi's death would begin.

"After six years an inquest into the death of my son Dodi and Princess Diana is long overdue," he said. "There are many unanswered questions arising from the tragedy and I have always believed that the circumstances surrounding the crash should be properly examined in a public court forum."

There has never been an inquest into the deaths of Diana and Fayed in Britain, although one was carried out in France.

Last year, France's highest court upheld the dismissal of manslaughter charges against nine photographers and a press motorcyclist in the car crash, ending court battles over who was responsible for her death. A judge ruled that drugs and alcohol taken by Paul, as well as excessive speed, caused the deaths.