Jill Dando wasn't killed in a mistaken identity assassination linked to a BBC undercover probe in the fashion industry, the investigative journalist working on the story has insisted.
TV favourite Jill was gunned down in the middle of the day on her doorstep in Fulham, London, on April 26, 1999. Her killing remains unsolved to this day.
It was previously suggested that Ms Dando may have been assassinated by mistake by a Russian hitman who meant to target another BBC journalist, according to documents submitted to a Paris court.
Court papers claim the killer was hired by French fashion mogul Gerald Marie, accused of multiple counts of sexual assault, to murder another BBC journalist Lisa Brinkworth after she went undercover to expose his agency, Elite Model Management.
But the hitman could have mistaken Jill Dando for the actual target, the documents say.
Lawyers reportedly argued the mix-up may have been due to the similarities in the appearance of the two journalists, their occupation, and the fact they both lived in the same area of London.
The fashion boss has described the allegations he hired the bungling killer as “fanciful nonsense”.
However, today investigative journalist Donal MacIntyre has rubbished the suggestion saying it does not stand "even the most basic scrutiny".
In a statement released today, Mr MacIntyre said: "There is no conceivable link between the murder of Jill Dando and our investigation into the abuse of young models in the fashion industry.
"The recent claims do not stand even the most basic scrutiny.
"My undercover team and I were still active with the principals in the investigation more than six months after the death of my BBC colleague Jill Dando.
"Simply put the timings preclude any association. I am mindful of any potential distress and unnecessary alarm such speculation can cause Jill Dando’s friends and family, and I am keen to set these spurious allegations aside as soon as possible."
The brutal slaying of the Crimewatch presenter remains one of the most infamous unsolved crimes in the UK in the last 20 years.
One of Jill's neighbours found her lifeless body outside her London home at around midday on the day she was shot.
Barry George was found guilty of Jill's murder in 2001. He spent seven years in prison before his acquittal in 2008.
Now more than two decades later, the case remains unsolved.
The notorious cold case was blown open again as Ms Brinkworth has claimed Marie wanted her dead after she claimed he sexually assaulted her in 1998, when she was working undercover to expose crimes in the fashion industry.
In the court papers, Ms Brinkworth’s lawyers reference an alleged conversation witnessed by a former Elite agency executive in which Marie considered hiring the Russian mafia to “deal with a problem”.
One of his legal team previously said: “It’s fanciful nonsense aimed at suggesting that Lisa Brinkworth was in fear of her life, and so was too scared to report the alleged attack within a reasonable time limit.
“In fact, Lisa Brinkworth made no effort to report any kind of sexual abuse at the time, and only started to take action decades later.”
Ms Brinkworth claims she was kept in a safe house following the broadcasting of her exposé on the BBC’s MacIntyre Investigates programme, presented by veteran journalist Mr MacIntyre.
Elite sued the BBC over the allegations, and in 2001 the Corporation agreed never to broadcast the programme again, as part of a confidentiality agreement.
A spokesman from the Met Police previously told The Mirror: "The investigation into the murder of Ms Dando remains open, as with all murder investigations.
"We will always explore any new information which may become available."
