The Metropolitan Police misplaced a letter containing serious allegations about Meghan Markle's father, Thomas Markle Sr, and had to ask the Duchess for another copy, leaving her reportedly upset and frustrated.
The force confirmed it received the letter in January 2019, which contained "a number of claims" about alleged "offending outside the United Kingdom" by Markle Sr, who is based in the US. The letter was sent to the MPS Protection Command over concerns about the security of the Duchess of Sussex.
Letter Lost and Recovered
According to The Times, the Met lost the letter and asked Meghan for another copy. The Duchess had kept a copy and was able to produce it for Scotland Yard when asked. The letter is understood to have been sent by Roslyn Loveless, who died last year and is the mother of Meghan's half-siblings Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle Jr.
The Met said it is reviewing how it handled the document. In a statement, the force said: "Following a thorough review of Met Police systems and records, we have confirmed that in January 2019, we received a letter containing a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom. It was sent to the MPS Protection Command to raise concerns in relation to the security of the Duchess of Sussex. The letter was reviewed and a decision was made that it should be passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their awareness. The details of the allegations in the letter were not shared with other law enforcement agencies. The MPS is reviewing the handling of this matter in 2019 and considering whether a referral to the IOPC [police watchdog] is necessary to review our approach."
Duchess's Response and Allegations
Meghan Markle said in a statement that she was previously assured the allegations in the letter "were being investigated" and was reportedly "upset and really frustrated" to learn they were not. She said: "In 2018, a letter was sent to the Metropolitan police and Royalty and Specialist Protection. That letter was subsequently shared with me. It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these were being investigated. I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications' distortion over the years, any distance from my father, and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children, was for one reason: to protect them. I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families. Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children."
Thomas Markle Sr is being investigated by Filipino authorities over allegations he was in possession of child sexual abuse material, following a report from his son. He denies all allegations, telling the Daily Mail: "This is bulls**t. It's just a bunch of lies. It's sick. I have no idea why Tom is trying to destroy me with these lies."
The Mirror has approached the Metropolitan Police for comment over claims of misplacing the letter.
