EXCLUSIVE: Princess Diana's 'Rambo' Celebrity Bodyguard Died Convinced Secret Service Unit May Have Caused Her Fatal Crash and Launched Frantic Cover-Up Operation
Princess Diana's former bodyguard died with a wild theory about the royal's death.
July 1 2026, Published 8:00 p.m. ET
Princess Diana's late former bodyguard is convinced British secret service agents may have accidentally killed the royal – then launched a frantic cover-up operation to pretend they were never at the scene of her horror crash.
RadarOnline.com can reveal martial arts expert Lee Sansum – dubbed 'Rambo' by Diana, and who died in 2025 aged 63 – went to his grave convinced a surveillance unit was secretly dispatched to monitor her by MI6.
Secret Service At Scene of Crash?
Bodyguard Lee Sansum suspected an accidental secret service collision.
He believed they were speeding alongside her black Mercedes S280 before its fatal smash in a Paris tunnel 25 years ago, killing the mom-of-two along with her companion Dodi Fayed and his driver Henri Paul.
Lee died convinced the squad could have "inadvertently" made Paul crash and thought there could be agents who refused to come forward to give evidence, which could explain the web of mysteries and conspiracy theories that still shroud Diana's deadly crash.
He also thought the story Paul was drunk at the wheel was drummed up by shadowy forces to make him a Lee Harvey Oswald-style patsy for the crash.
The ex-Army man and other security guards drew straws to decide who would go with Diana on the night of her crash, with his pal Trevor Rees-Jones losing the draw and getting in the car – before ending up with catastrophic injuries and no memory of the accident after he survived.
In an exclusive interview from his home before his death, Burnley-born Sansum said: "My view is based on my experience of being involved in surveillance prior to Diana. We were under surveillance by government services. It was expected. It is ludicrous to think the princess was out in a foreign country without anybody looking to see where they were – that's pretty ludicrous.
"It is feasible our security services were there in the tunnel. They were possibly on the high-performance bikes that were never found.
"I believe they were there at the time. I think they were there, and somebody said, ‘Right, we can't be seen to have been here', and that triggered a catalogue of events that the public don't get."
He added, "I think the coincidences (and conspiracy theories) were the result of an attempt to cover up the fact our secret services were there at the moment of the crash."
Lee stressed he didn't think security agents murdered Diana, as many conspiracy theorists believe.
Trevor Rees-Jones, the only survivor, sustained catastrophic injuries in the Paris crash
But he went on: "Whether it was a driver clipped somebody or something like that – I do believe there were people on the ground at the time.
"A witness driving a car traveling in front of the Mercedes in Paris that night told the inquest that he saw a high-powered motorbike overtake the car just seconds before the crash. Another witness travelling in the opposite direction saw a second motorbike swerve to avoid smoke and wreckage, then carry on out of the tunnel without stopping. The riders of those bikes were never found, and that is no coincidence.
"I believe that security officers, possibly British or a combined British/French team, following Diana, may have either inadvertently caused the crash or were in close proximity to the car when it happened."
He theorized, "If it were known that MI6 operatives were right by the Mercedes at the critical moment, a lot of people would have blamed them for it, and this would have been a huge scandal.
"I don't believe for one moment that MI6 arranged to have Diana killed. There was no reason to do it, and a car crash is not a reliable way to ensure the death of a target anyway.
"Trevor was in that car. He survived and eventually recovered. I don't think they were trying to murder Diana, but I do believe they were there, and that would have been enough to implicate them in her death."
He suggested, "Perhaps they inadvertently caused Henri Paul to take evasive action. Maybe all they did was follow Diana's car into that tunnel and watch in horror as the driver lost control of it.
"Either way, if they were there, covering up their presence at the scene of the crash that killed the most famous woman in the world and mother of the future king would have been crucial.
"It would have been the only priority from that point onwards and would explain why a different explanation for the crash was badly needed: the theory that Henri Paul was drunk… the whole thing stank, but a scapegoat was needed."
Sansum added he thought "there is more evidence there" that will never be revealed by the agents he believed fled the tunnel.
The Shocking Apartment Raid
Authorities discovered minimal alcohol during the initial driver Henri Paul apartment raid.
He claimed agents who first raided driver Paul's apartment following the smash only found "a couple of bottles of booze".
Sansum claimed a second visit revealed "enough to stock a full bar" and highlighted a conspiracy theory the chauffeur's blood was switched with specimens flooded with alcohol to shift blame for Diana's death onto the driver.
He pondered: "If it was just an accident, then how can we account for some of the strange things that happened that night or explain the actions taken by the authorities afterwards, which provide almost overwhelming evidence of a cover-up of some kind?
"Is it possible that members of our security services were involved in or at least witnessed the accident, but their presence has been completely erased from the official version of events?
"If you think it impossible that Princess Diana was under surveillance from our security services at the time, then let me ask this question: can you imagine a scenario where the prime minister contacts the head of MI6 and asks him where Princess Diana is and he replies that he doesn't know?"
He claimed, "Diana was the mother of the heir to the throne. They would have had eyes on her all of the time. Imagine if she had been targeted by terrorists, kidnapped by criminals, or simply compromised by being in the wrong place with the wrong people at the wrong time?
"No way would the authorities have allowed that to happen. Diana was under surveillance for her own protection but also so that everyone knew where she was at all times, which was surely a matter of national security."
Princess Diana Feared Assassination Plot
Princess Diana questioned her safety following the Versace assassination.
Lee said he and his colleague Martin spotted a "14 Company Special Reconnaissance Unit guy" near the Al-Fayed home in Oxted before the team left with Diana and her rumored fiancée Dodi to St Tropez for her infamous boat trip with the playboy.
Sansum claimed, "I didn't believe Martin at first. I even said, ‘No way there is a DET guy here.' Martin was adamant: 'I'm telling you, I lived three doors down from him in Hereford.'
"We went back and saw the bloke again, and Martin confirmed it was the man he knew from his time serving with the SAS.
"We were generally followed by MI5, and this was the first time we had seen a Special Forces guy near Oxted."
Sansum also claimed Diana, 36, told him of her fears she was going to be assassinated like her gunned-down pal Gianni Versace during her final sunshine break in St Tropez.
But he added he couldn't put his arms around her as he knew their every move was being watched.
Sansum said: "When Versace was killed, she was in tears, crying on the boat, and asked me, ‘Are they going to kill me?' It didn't shock me she said that. It seemed a reasonable question to ask in that situation – she had a healthy paranoia."
After Diana's death, Sansum said he too feels he may have been put under surveillance by a similar team he suspects could have caused the royal's smash.
He added about his time back in Britain after the Paris horror: "Whether it was just two guys in a black car, I don't know. But if you're in the depths of a British security operation at that level, they would know where each one of us was."
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Princess Diana affectionately nicknamed her highly skilled protector 'Rambo.'
Sansum, who served as a royal military police officer, was one of Diana's bodyguards shortly before she died in 1997, escorting her during a family holiday to the French resort of Saint-Tropez that year.
The former bodyguard's wife announced the tragic news of his death in a post on Facebook in May last year, revealing he had died of a sudden heart attack.
Alongside a series of pictures showing the couple throughout their years together, she wrote: "Since meeting in 1998, Lee Sansum has been my soul mate, hero and most amazing man in my world.
"So I'm devastated to share that he is no longer with us. He had a fatal heart attack on Saturday morning at home.
"His huge presence will be missed around the world as much as it is in our household, although his capacity for love and the life skills he has shared have left a legacy that will never be lost."
"He's forever loved and will always be with us. I love you more than ever, 'My Lovely Lee.'" she concluded.
Dad-of-six Sansum held black belts in karate, jujitsu and kick-boxing – prompting him to be nicknamed 'Rambo' by Diana.
He was also a guard for A-listers including Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Nicole Kidman, and Tom Cruise.
