Meghan Markle reportedly wanted to publicly address child sex abuse allegations made against her father, Thomas Markle Snr, but was advised against it by a royal bodyguard.
Scotland Yard said it had passed a letter "containing a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom" by Mr Markle Snr to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but did not share details with other law enforcement agencies.
Letter Details and Advice
The handwritten letter from Mr Markle Snr's first wife, Roslyn Loveless, accused the former TV lighting technician of child sexual abuse and claimed he travelled to the Philippines and Thailand as he believed "12-year-olds are legal there".
Ms Loveless's letter was assessed by Scotland Yard's royal protection team and passed to the Sussexes' office to make them aware. Meghan wanted to address the allegations publicly, but she was reportedly told by a police bodyguard: "Leave it with us. We'll investigate it", The Times reports.
The publication claims the same officer, who served as part of Royalty and Specialist Protection, advised the Duchess not to go public as she faced criticism for cutting ties with her father at that time. Scotland Yard is reportedly still trying to locate that officer.
Met Police Review and Referral
The Met is "reviewing the handling of this matter" and has voluntarily referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct "in respect of the decision not to inform other law enforcement agencies, and the decision to pass the letter to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex".
Claims against Mr Markle Snr came after his son, Thomas Markle Jr, told The Sun he found a stash of child sex abuse images belonging to his father at his former home in the Philippines and reported it to local police and the FBI.
Thomas Markle's Response
Mr Markle Snr has admitted paying for sex in the south-east Asian country, but denies ever possessing a hoard of such material. He told the Mail on Sunday he had "never had sex with anyone under the age of 18" and when he was single he travelled to the Philippines at least twice and "slept with prostitutes".
The 82-year-old said: "I like Asian women but that is not a crime. I am not well enough to go to the Philippines but I will speak to anyone who wants to talk to me. I have nothing to hide."
Mr Markle Snr is learning to walk again at a nursing facility in Florida after he had his leg amputated during life-saving surgery last year. He said he would also welcome any forensic examination of his computer, telling the Mail on Sunday: "If there is anything bad on there, it was put there by someone else."
The Duchess sent a final letter to her father while he was recovering from the leg amputation last year, according to reports in the Sun on Sunday. She wrote to say she knows he is an abuser and that he will never see his grandchildren Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, according to the newspaper.
Ms Loveless, who died in 2024, is the mother of Mr Markle Jr and Meghan's other half-sibling, Samantha Markle, who has defended their father, telling the Mail on Sunday: "I believe this is a set-up."
Mr Markle Snr and Ms Loveless divorced in 1975. He married the Duchess of Sussex's mother, Doria Ragland, four years later.
Meghan is said to be "upset and really frustrated" by the Met's handling of the investigation, the Telegraph has reported. The Duchess said she was shown a letter sent to Scotland Yard making "troubling" allegations against Mr Markle Snr and was assured that these were being investigated.
Meghan became estranged from her father ahead of her 2018 wedding after he was caught staging paparazzi photographs. He did not attend the ceremony, leaving King Charles to accompany Meghan down the aisle. It meant the only member of her family present was her mother.
