london —
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, said on Friday she was “deeply distressed” by reports that her father had a vast collection of images depicting child sexual abuse, and revealed that she was made aware of “alarming allegations” against her father in 2018.
Britain’s The Sun newspaper reported late Thursday that Thomas Markle’s son said he had discovered a stash of indecent images of underage children at his father’s home in the Philippines and notified authorities there.
Thomas Markle Sr. denies the charges.
“When I found this material, I was horrified and had no choice but to report it to my father,” Thomas Markle Jr. said in an interview with The Sun. Markle Jr. told Philippine authorities that he found “hundreds and thousands” of images of child sexual abuse in his father’s home, and that the images were found in storage boxes and computer hard drives, The Sun reported.
The Philippine Department of Justice’s child abuse unit told CNN on Friday that the matter was “under investigation.”
Markle Jr. also told The Sun that he reported the discovery of the material to the FBI hotline, the National Center for Exploited and Missing Children, and state police in Pennsylvania, where his father lived at the time.
“I am deeply saddened by the news that has come to light over the past 24 hours and my thoughts are with the children who may have been affected,” Meghan said in a statement Friday.
Thomas Markle Sr. has strongly denied the allegations, telling Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper that they were a “pack of lies” and that he has not owned a computer since leaving Mexico with his son in 2025.
“I am shocked, hurt and extremely upset that my son is making these accusations against me. I would never do what is being accused,” Markle Sr. told the Mail from a rehabilitation center in Florida. Markle Sr. had his leg amputated last year due to a blood clot and is learning to walk with a prosthetic leg, the newspaper said.
Thomas Markle Sr.’s other daughter, Samantha Markle, told the Mail that the allegations were untrue and that her brother had made them up. Samantha Markle also said her father “didn’t have access to those computers for two years” and claimed others “could have had access to those computers.”
Meghan said she learned of the allegations against her estranged father eight years ago. “In 2018, a letter was sent to the Metropolitan Police and the Royal Family Safeguarding Professional Protection Agency. That letter was then shared with me,” she said in a statement on Friday. “It raises troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I have been given assurances that these are being investigated.”
It is not clear what specific allegations Meghan referred to in her letter.
“Despite the distortions of certain media publications over the years, I hope you will understand that my choice to distance myself from my father and deny him access to my children was in part for one reason: to protect my children,” Meghan said.
“Authorities believed he was doing the same thing to other family members.”
“While the scope of what has now been revealed is more heartbreaking than I could have imagined, it is my sincere hope that justice will be fully served and that the safety and protection of innocent children will continue to be a priority.”
CNN is attempting to contact Thomas Markle Sr., Thomas Markle Jr., and Samantha Markle. CNN has reached out to the Metropolitan Police Department, FBI and Pennsylvania State Police for comment.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
