Henri Paul
Born in Lorient, Paul was one of the five children of Jean Paul, a teacher, and Gisèle Paul, who worked at the city council. An aviation aficionado, Paul earned his pilot's license at age 18 from Vannes and served in the Air Force. After graduating from high school, he decided to move to Paris, where he initially worked as an aviation instructor and later in the nautical industry selling boats. In 1986, he was hired at the Hôtel Ritz Paris, eventually becoming a confidant of the Al-Fayed family, owner of the hotel. Initially deputy head of security, on June 30, 1997, he became the head of security at the Ritz.