Thomas Markle, the 82-year-old estranged father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, was arrested by federal agents in Florida on Friday and charged with possessing child sexual abuse material that prosecutors say includes photographs of him with young girls.
Agents took him into custody early Friday at a nursing home near Tampa. He faces a single possession count carrying up to 20 years in federal prison, and he was expected to make a first appearance that afternoon before the federal court for Florida's Middle District in Tampa.
The case grew out of an inquiry in the Philippines, where Markle lived until a stroke and the amputation of his left leg sent him back to the United States earlier this year. It was not immediately clear whether he has a lawyer; he has previously denied the accusations, calling them lies.
What agents found
FBI agents searched two Los Angeles-area storage units Markle had rented since 2008 and seized about 78 items, 27 from one and 51 from the other, according to a 14-page criminal complaint filed in federal court in California. The haul included books, slides and film negatives, and both units were still being paid for by auto-pay as recently as last month.
At least 18 images found in one unit appear to be child pornography, the FBI says. Two allegedly show a clothed adult man with a nude prepubescent girl, and a witness identified the man as Markle; details in another photo led investigators to place it in a hotel in the Philippines.
One unit also held mail addressed to Thomas Markle and an international driving permit with his name, birth date and what appeared to be his photo. The FBI said some of the film was made in New York, meaning it crossed state lines, and that part of the seized material is still being reviewed.
FBI Director Kash Patel said agents worked quickly with Justice Department partners to find the material and make the arrest, warning that predators who target children will find no safe haven. Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. attorney in California's Central District, called the allegations extremely serious and pledged to pursue the case as far as federal law allows.
Inquiries abroad
Philippine National Police said they opened their investigation last month after Markle's son, Thomas Markle Jr., turned over his father's belongings. Markle Jr. has said he found the images while clearing out his father's former home in Cebu City, reported them to local police and contacted the FBI. Philippine authorities later said they had recovered thousands of photos of underage boys and girls.
Markle also once lived in Rosarito, Mexico. Prosecutors in Mexico's Baja California state said a search on Oct. 29, prompted by a 911 call, turned up three old magazines and VHS tapes containing child pornography, and that the evidence was sent to Mexico's federal Attorney General's Office.
A long estrangement
Meghan said last month that she was deeply distressed by the allegations and had known of them since 2018, when a letter making claims about her father was sent to London police. She said her decision to keep him from her children, Archie and Lilibet, was made solely to protect them.
The breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex
London's Metropolitan Police has said it did not pass the letter's claims to other law enforcement agencies at the time, and it referred itself to Britain's police watchdog. A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan declined to comment on the arrest.
Markle, a retired television lighting and photography director, skipped his daughter's 2018 wedding to Prince Harry. The couple stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and moved to California, then returned to Britain two months ago.
