Duchess of Sussex said last month she was ‘deeply distressed’ by allegations
Thomas Markle, the father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, was arrested in Florida by US federal agents on charges related to child sexual abuse material, according to federal law enforcement sources.
Markle, 82, was taken into custody near Tampa, according to news wires from the Associated Press and Reuters, each citing unnamed sources.
The arrest followed weeks in which allegations about Markle moved into public view. The Duchess of Sussex said last month that she was “deeply distressed” about allegations that a collection of child sexual abuse images was found at her father’s former home.
Meghan also said a letter containing “troubling allegations” about her father was sent to police in London in 2018.
Her statement came after the Sun newspaper published claims from her half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr, who alleged he had found a stash of images belonging to their father at his former home in the Philippines.
Thomas Markle Jr had been named as a person of interest in the case earlier this week, according to the Guardian’s report.
Markle, a retired television lighting and photography director, did not attend the wedding of Harry and Meghan, amid what the Guardian described as acrimony and estrangement between father and daughter.
Meghan has since said she decided to distance herself from her father to protect her children.
The Guardian’s account noted that more details would follow soon.