Estranged father of Duchess of Sussex was arrested for keeping child sexual abuse material, authorities say
The estranged father of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, has been jailed after US authorities said he cut an electronic monitoring device off his ankle, days after his arrest for keeping child sexual abuse material in storage units in California.
Thomas Markle, 82, was in custody awaiting a hearing in federal court in Tampa, Florida, first assistant US attorney Bill Essayli said. He was arrested shortly after he cut off the ankle bracelet at 1.45am on Tuesday, Essayli said.
“Release conditions are court orders, not suggestions. We are asking the court to revoke his release and detain him pending trial, and we will continue to prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law,” Essayli said.
The US magistrate judge Lindsay Griffin agreed on Tuesday that Markle now must be kept in custody.
Markle’s arrest on Friday followed the seizure of approximately 78 items, including slides, film negatives and books that contained suspected child sexual abuse images in storage in the Los Angeles area, Essayli said.
Among the alleged child sexual abuse material were sexually explicit photographs of Markle with underage girls, including one taken in what appears to be part of a motel chain in the Philippines, Reuters reports.
