Thomas Markle has been arrested and charged following reports he was under investigation over allegations that images of child sexual abuse had been found at his home.
On Friday, it was confirmed that Markle – the estranged father of Meghan Markle – had been arrested in Florida.
The US Department of Justice confirmed in a statement: “A Florida man was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint alleging he kept child sexual abuse material (CSAM), including sexually explicit photographs of himself with prepubescent girls, in two Los Angeles-area storage units he rented for nearly two decades.
“Thomas Wayne Markle, 82, of Lakeland, Florida, is charged with one count of possession of child pornography.”
FBI director Kash Patel subsequently said: “Mr. Markle allegedly targeted innocent children and sought to steal their innocence through his criminal actions.”
He added that FBI agents had “moved quickly, identified and located the explicit material, and arrested Mr. Markle in Florida”.
In response to the initial reports of her father facing investigation, the Duchess of Sussex released a statement, which read: “I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed.”
She then explained: “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.”
The Duchess continued: “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,” she concluded.
