Duchess of Sussex Says Father's Abuse Image Claims Cause Deep Distress

The Duchess of Sussex issued a statement on October 23 addressing new allegations regarding her father.

Meghan Markle described herself as deeply distressed by claims that Thomas Markle Sr possessed child sexual abuse images.

The Sun reported that Markle's son, Thomas Markle Jr, found a large collection of images at their father's former residence in the Philippines.

Markle Jr told detectives he discovered hundreds, if not thousands, of images on computers and mobile phones.

The devices were kept in four large boxes at the home in Cebu where Markle Sr lived until May 2026.

Markle Sr, 60, returned to the United States in May 2026 after suffering a stroke.

The father denied the accusations in a statement to the Daily Mail, calling them sick lies.

Markle Sr said he was shocked and hurt by the reports.

He noted that he had not possessed the computers since leaving Mexico in January 2025.

Markle Sr is currently in a rehabilitation center in Florida learning to walk with a prosthetic limb.

Meghan Markle said the Metropolitan Police shared a letter with her in 2018.

The letter contained disturbing allegations against her father and was sent to the Royalty and Specialist Protection unit, or Rasp, according to her spokesperson. She stated she was assured the authorities were investigating the claims. She said any distance from her father and her decision not to let him have contact with her children served one purpose: to protect them. "I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families," she said. She added that she hopes justice will be fully served and that children's safety remains the priority. Sources indicated that Markle could not speak publicly in 2018 because doing so might have jeopardized any future investigation or exposed her to legal action. The Rasp unit passed the letter to her shortly after her wedding. The Metropolitan Police has not previously investigated Markle Sr and is not doing so now, according to sources. The force said it is making internal inquiries to confirm whether Rasp officers were involved in passing on the letter. Philippine officials confirmed the matter is under investigation. Nicholas Ty, an undersecretary at the justice department, told the BBC that a human trafficking and child sexual exploitation taskforce in Cebu is handling the case. Interior secretary Jonvic Remulla said national police have secured Markle Sr's computer for a full digital forensic examination. He expected the forensic results to be available in one week. Markle Jr also contacted the FBI, which said it will support Philippine authorities as appropriate and investigate any related allegations of federal violations of US law. Markle's half-sister, Samantha Markle, defended their father and accused Markle Jr of making up lies to make money. She alleged the claims came days after their father cut off his funds. She said the computers were out of their father's possession for two years, noting that this leaves a lot of room for tampering. Markle Sr has been estranged from the Duchess since he missed her wedding to Prince Harry on health grounds. He has never met his grandchildren, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five.