Snapper hits back at Johansson chase claims
Scarlett Johansson's claims of getting caught up in a traffic accident while trying to escape the paparazzi have been challenged by a photographer who witnessed the crash.
Just hours after her Friday accident, reports emerged that the Lost In Translation star was driving into the entrance of California's Disneyland, when she swerved to get away from pursuing photographers and hit another vehicle.
But JFX Images photographer Mario Toruno, who was pursuing the actress at the time, questions whether she was even aware of photographers tailing her before the accident, because they kept a low profile, using cars in front of them as cover.
Toruno, who saw the accident unfold as he sat at stoplights nearby, says: "When she was driving in to the parking lot, she was going very, very slow - maybe about 15 miles per hour - and she started veering to the left.
"It was almost like when you drop something on the car floor and you try to pick it up. Or she could've been busy talking with the two friends she had in her car. I couldn't see what was going on inside of the car, but from the outside I could see that she wasn't at all being chased when she hit the other lady's car.
"The parking lot is confusing because it's very busy, so maybe she was unsure of whether she wanted to turn left or right.
"I'm guessing that because she veered to the left, she was unable to see the other car - the only other vehicle at the parking lot entrance at that time - from her blindside. That's when she slowly slammed into the other car.
"The nearest cars to them at the time of the accident were at least 40 yards away, and none of them contained paparazzi. It was just regular oncoming traffic. I know, because there was another set of photographers that with the traffic at the stoplights.
"I'm sure Disneyland has video cameras at its entrance to prove that this is what happened. To be honest, we'd have been happier snapping pictures of Scarlett on the rides with her friends.
"We never in a million years thought we'd end up taking shots of a road accident, and obviously that's not what we set out to do. We were as surprised as everyone else, because everything was in such a slow motion when the cars hit each other."
