Court orders house arrest for Meghan Markle’s father, accused of possessing child sexual abuse material

Thomas Markle, the father of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has been arrested in Florida on suspicion of possessing images of child sexual abuse.

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) said the 82-year-old was arrested under a federal criminal complaint. He faces one count of possessing indecent images of minors.

At the end of a 30-minute court hearing on Friday, the court ordered Markle to remain under house arrest at the assisted living facility where he is receiving medical care, subject to electronic monitoring. He did not enter a plea at the hearing.

CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, reported that Markle arrived at court in a wheelchair, accompanied by two US marshals.

The Department of Justice and the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said in a joint statement that a date for the next hearing in California would be set later.

According to the US Department of Justice, the arrest followed FBI searches of several storage units in Los Angeles registered in Markle’s name. He had rented them since 2008, and the most recent payment was made in October this year.

Agents seized about 78 items during the searches, including film negatives, slides and books. They are suspected of containing images of child sexual abuse.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the authorities acted swiftly to arrest Markle. He said the FBI would use all its resources to protect children and prosecute anyone suspected of such crimes.

Investigation documents show that witnesses confidently identified Markle in two images suspected of containing child sexual abuse material. The person in the photographs appears to be between 30 and 40 years old, suggesting that the suspected material could be several decades old. Markle has previously denied allegations that he possessed the material, calling the claims “disgusting lies”.

The investigation has also extended to the Philippines. Last month, police there obtained a warrant to search devices believed to have been taken from Markle’s former home in the country.

Thomas Markle Jr., Meghan Markle’s half-brother, handed over four boxes of material to the authorities, including computers, phones, external hard drives and old videotapes.

After suffering several strokes, Thomas Markle Sr. moved to the Philippines last year and lived in Cebu until May. He then reportedly went to a rehabilitation facility in Florida, where he was learning to walk again after having one leg amputated.

Meanwhile, London’s Metropolitan Police confirmed in October that it had received a letter in 2019 containing several allegations concerning Thomas Markle.

According to police, information about allegations relating to events outside British territory was passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but not to other law enforcement agencies. The force has asked the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to review how the letter was handled.

When the allegations became public in October, Meghan Markle said she was deeply disturbed by the information that had emerged and that her thoughts were with all the children who may have been harmed. She has been estranged from her father since 2018; according to the BBC, she had cut off contact with him even earlier.