Thomas Markle, the father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has been placed under house arrest after federal authorities charged him with possessing child sexual abuse material, the United States (US) Department of Justice (DOJ) announced.
The 82-year-old was arrested by federal agents in Florida and appeared before a US District Court in Tampa, where a magistrate judge ordered his release under house arrest.
First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli, who leads the US Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, said that Markle faced accusations of possessing images depicting himself with minor girls.
“Mr. Markle is accused of possessing child sexual abuse material, including photographs depicting himself with minor girls,” Essayli added.
The DOJ alleged that Markle kept sexually explicit photographs of himself with prepubescent girls in two storage units in the Los Angeles area, which he rented for nearly two decades.
Under the court’s order, Markle cannot travel outside Florida’s Middle District and California’s Central District, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
The court also ordered Markle to undergo a psychiatric evaluation before the case proceeds, citing his age, physical condition and apparent memory issues, court records showed.
Markle has not entered a plea. Prosecutors added that his arraignment in California, where he will formally respond to the charges, has yet to be scheduled and will likely take several weeks.
Federal agents seized around 78 items, including slides, film negatives and books containing suspected child sexual abuse material, the DOJ stated.
According to federal investigators, two images showed a man identified by a witness as Markle with a nude prepubescent girl. Another image depicted a nude girl in a room that appeared to be part of a motel chain in the Philippines.
A criminal complaint also described an image showing a clothed man with a nude girl sitting on his lap. An FBI agent wrote that the man appeared to reach around the girl and touch her inappropriately. A redacted version of the photograph was later shown to a witness who identified the man as Markle, the filing stated.
If convicted, Markle faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, the DOJ said.
Meghan Markle’s father placed under house arrest after US agents seize images of alleged child sexual abuse
An international media outlet has contacted Markle’s attorney for comment. A spokesperson for Meghan told the outlet that she had no comment at this time.
Markle has been estranged from his daughter and did not attend her 2018 wedding to Britain’s Prince Harry.
