The Metropolitan Police has referred itself to the police watchdog after it failed to pass on allegations about Meghan Markle’s father to other law enforcement agencies.
The force handed a letter containing accusations against Thomas Markle Sr, 82, to the Sussexes in 2019, which contained ‘a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom’.
But it failed to pass on the letter, or details of the alleged offences, to any other investigatory body, and did not launch a probe into Markle Sr himself.
The Met does now intend to make ‘a number of referrals to relevant overseas law enforcement agencies’ in relation to the claims set out in the letter.
It’s understood the letter was written by Markle’s late first wife, Roslyn Loveless, and contained ‘troubling and disturbing’ allegations against the Duchess of Sussex’s father.
It comes after Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr, 60, claimed last week he had discovered a trove of child sex abuse images in his father’s possessions at his home in the Philippines.
Meghan and her father Thomas Sr have been estranged since 2018, the year she married Harry
Thomas Markle Jr, Meghan’s brother, claimed to have found the child-abuse material packed up in boxes at his father’s Philippines home
Commander Adam Slonecki, who leads the Metropolitan Police’s Protection Command, said: ‘In January 2019, the Met received a letter addressed to our Protection Command, specifically the Fixated Threats Assessment Centre.
‘The author of the letter suggested they were writing to raise concerns relating to the security of the Duchess of Sussex. While the letter did not actually contain any information specifically related to security matters, it did contain a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom.
‘The letter was assessed and subsequently passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their awareness. The details of the allegations in the letter were not shared with other law enforcement agencies.
‘In recent days, the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards has carried out an initial review into our actions following receipt of the letter in 2019.
‘Following that review, a voluntary referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in respect of the decision not to inform other law enforcement agencies, and the decision to pass the letter to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
‘In addition, it is our intention to make a number of referrals to relevant overseas law enforcement agencies in relation to the allegations contained within the letter. That process is underway and will be completed in the coming days.’
This is a breaking news story and is being updated.
