Jill Dando may have been killed by mistake after a Russian hitman mistook her for another BBC journalist, according to documents received by a court in Paris.
Papers claim the assassin was hired by French fashion mogul Gerald Marie, accused on several counts of sexual assault, to murder reporter Lisa Brinkworth after she went undercover at Elite Model Management to expose him.
However, the killer then accidentally shot down Jill Dando after mistaking her as the target, the documents say.
Lawyers reportedly argue that the mix-up occurred due to the similarities between the two woman in terms of looks, occupation, and the fact they both stayed in the same area of London, the Mirror reports.
It was also said that Jill's fiance, Alan Farthing, was Lisa's doctor.
Lawyers in the documents refer to a conversation witnessed by former Elite executive Omar Harfouch in which Marie ordered a member of the Russian mafia to 'deal with a problem,' reports the Daily Mail.
The documents from French law firm Bourdon Associes reportedly say: "Shortly thereafter… a BBC journalist, Jill Dando, was shot dead in April 1999.
"Indeed, these two journalists were in their thirties, were blonde with the same facial features, of the same height and of similar stature.
"They lived close to each other and had people in common, including the husband of Jill Dando."
In a crime that shocked the nation, TV favourite Jill was gunned down in the middle of the day on her doorstep in Fulham, London, on April 26, 1999.
The brutal slaying of the Crimewatch presenter remains one of the most infamous unsolved crimes in the UK of 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.
A spokesman from the Met Police 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."
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