Police gave Meghan Markle letter on father

The Metropolitan Police confirmed on Friday that they handed a 2019 letter containing allegations about Thomas Markle Sr to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The force stated that the document detailed claims of offending outside Britain and was passed along for the couple's awareness. However, the Met said it did not share the information with other law enforcement agencies at the time.

The confirmation comes after reports that Thomas Markle Jr, 60, told detectives in the Philippines that he found a large collection of images at his former home in Cebu. He described the discovery as hundreds or thousands of images of child sexual abuse stored on computers and mobile phones inside four large boxes. Markle Sr lived in that home until returning to the United States in May following a stroke. The Sun newspaper reported that Markle Jr contacted the FBI in the US regarding the findings.

In a statement, a Met spokesperson said the force conducted a thorough review of its records. The letter had been sent to the Protection Command to raise security concerns about the Duchess. The spokesperson noted that a decision was made to pass the letter to the royal office. The Met is now reviewing how the matter was handled in 2019 and considering whether to refer the case to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.

Markle Sr denied the allegations in an interview with the Daily Mail, calling them sick lies. Meanwhile, Meghan said through a spokesperson that she was deeply distressed by the news. She stated that her thoughts were with any children who may have been harmed. She explained that the decision to limit her children's contact with their grandfather was made to protect them. Prince Archie is seven years old and Princess Lilibet is five.

Meghan initially said the letter was sent in 2018 but later corrected the year to 2019. A spokesperson said it was understandable she might have misremembered the date by a few months when recalling events from more than seven years ago without a contemporaneous record. The spokesperson added that if the Met holds a time-stamped record showing the review occurred in 2019, that date should be treated as accurate. Sources indicated that Meghan could not speak publicly about the allegations in 2019 to avoid jeopardizing a future investigation or facing legal action.

The Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry recently moved back to the UK from the United States. Markle Sr has never met his grandchildren. The Met's confirmation addresses questions about what the police knew and when they shared that knowledge with the family.