Met Police ‘reviewing its handling’ of claims about Meghan’s father Thomas Markle

Met Police ‘reviewing its handling’ of claims about Meghan’s father Thomas Markle Scotland Yard confirmed details of allegations made against Thomas Markle passed to the force were not shared with other law enforcement agencies - Bookmark Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in The Metropolitan Police is “reviewing its handling” of allegations made to the force about the Duchess of Sussex’s father Thomas Markle. Authorities in the Philippines are investigating allegations that Meghan’s estranged father kept child sex abuse images at his former home. On Friday, the Duchess said she was made aware of “disturbing allegations” about her father in 2018. She said she was shown a letter sent to Scotland Yard eight years ago making “troubling” allegations against him and she was assured that these were being investigated. The Met on Saturday confirmed it received a letter in 2019 about a “number of claims” relating to Mr Markle, but admitted it did not pass details of the allegations to other law enforcement authorities. It said it was now looking into whether it needed to refer itself to the police watchdog over its conduct. In a statement, Scotland Yard said: “Following a thorough review of Met Police systems and records, we have confirmed that in January 2019, we received a letter containing a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom. It was sent to the MPS Protection Command to raise concerns in relation to the security of the Duchess of Sussex. “The letter was reviewed and a decision was made that it should be 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. “The MPS is reviewing the handling of this matter in 2019 and considering whether a referral to the IOPC is necessary to review our approach.” Meghan’s half-brother Thomas Jr told The Sun that he had found “hundreds” of child sex images on computers and a cellphone, which were left behind at his father’s home on Cebu when he moved from the Philippines earlier this year. Mr Markle Sr was forced to return to the US from Cebu after suffering a stroke and a blood clot, which led to the amputation of his left leg and he is reportedly now living in a rehab centre in Florida, where he is learning to walk again. Meghan “reached out” to him in the aftermath of the operation, a spokesperson for the duchess said, and she was also said to have tried to do so previously. The duchess became estranged from her former TV lighting director father in the run-up to her 2018 wedding to Prince Harry after he was caught staging paparazzi photographs. Mr Markle Jnr said he submitted a police statement in the country, telling the newspaper he was “horrified” by what he found, which gave him “no option” but to report his father. “I won’t speak to my father ever again unless I’m called to give evidence against him”, he said. He is said to have reported his discovery to the FBI Hotline and to the state police in Pennsylvania, as well as the US-based National Centre for Exploited and Missing Children in July. Nicholas Ty, undersecretary for the Philippines Department of Justice, confirmed an investigation was underway. He told ITV News: “Our Anti-Trafficking and Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children taskforce in Cebu is currently investigating the matter.” Mr Markle Sr has denied the accusations and said he believed his son was “trying to destroy” him. He said: “I’m shocked, I’m hurt and I’m very upset that my son is making these accusations against me. I could never do what I’m being accused of. It’s the worst thing anyone could accuse me of. “This is bulls***. It’s just a bunch of lies. It’s sick. I have no idea why Tom is trying to destroy me with these lies.”