Meghan Markle said Friday that she kept her father from having contact with her children to protect them, revealing that she was informed of allegations against him in 2018 as new accusations surfaced about material allegedly found at his former Philippine home.
Thomas Markle Sr denies possessing child sexual abuse material. The reports contain no forensic findings or charges establishing the allegations, which were made by his son, Thomas Markle Jr.
"I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed," the Duchess of Sussex said in a statement.
Meghan linked her decision concerning Archie and Lilibet to a letter she said had been sent to London's Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection in 2018 and subsequently shared with her.
"It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these were being investigated," she said.
The Metropolitan Police had not confirmed whether it received the letter or investigated its contents, according to the Express. Meghan's statement therefore describes what she was told, rather than an established account of police findings.
She said she hoped people would understand that her distance from her father and decision to prevent contact with her children were "for one reason: to protect them."
The latest allegations concern boxes that Markle Jr said he discovered while clearing his father's former residence in Cebu. He told British newspapers that they contained "hundreds, if not thousands" of suspected child sexual abuse images.
Markle Jr said he submitted a sworn statement to investigators in the Philippines and contacted U.S. authorities. The Sun reported that the FBI confirmed receiving an affidavit, but that acknowledgment does not establish that the bureau opened an investigation or verified the claims.
The Sun also reported that the Philippines' Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking appointed a task force led by the Philippine National Police Women and Children Protection Center. The center declined to comment to the newspaper.
The Express reported that Philippine police were preparing to seize the material. Neither report provided an examination establishing its contents or ownership.
Speaking to the Daily Mail from a rehabilitation center in Florida, Markle Sr rejected his son's account.
"I could never do what I'm being accused of. It's the worst thing anyone could accuse me of," he said. He also described the allegations as "a bunch of lies."
Meghan's half-sister, Samantha Markle, disputed the accusations as well, telling the Daily Mail they had "no merit in them whatsoever." She claimed her father had lacked access to computers stored in the Philippines for two years and suggested he could have been set up.
Meghan and her father have been estranged since before her May 2018 wedding to Prince Harry, according to the Express. Markle Sr was expected to accompany her down the aisle but withdrew after saying he had suffered a heart attack; Charles, then Prince of Wales, accompanied her instead.
The Express reported that Markle Sr has never met Harry, Archie or Lilibet, despite his previous public appeals to repair the relationship.
