Some family stories carry their wounds for decades before they break into public view. A letter written years ago by Thomas Markle's first wife, now deceased, has surfaced as a grave accusation against him, reaching London's police, then the Sussex household, and now investigators on two continents. Markle, now 82 and recovering from an amputation, denies the charges while admitting to behaviour that has shadowed his past. What remains is a question older than any single case: what a society owes to the children at the centre of such claims, and how carefully its institutions must weigh a word
Letter Making Claims About Meghan's Father Was Written by His First Wife, BBC Understands
Markle, 82, denies allegations of child sexual abuse imagery reportedly found at his former Philippines home, and Meghan says she is distressed for any children who may have been harmed.
A letter shared in 2019 went no further, and now the Met is reviewing why
Mark
Why does the authorship of this letter matter?
Mimi
It puts a name to the origin of the claims. The BBC understands it was written by Roslyn Loveless, Markle's first wife and mother of Samantha and Thomas Jr. She has died, so she can't be asked about it.
Luke
And "the BBC understands" is not the same as an official confirmation. The Met confirmed a letter exists and was shared with the Sussexes. It hasn't said who wrote it, at least in this reporting.
Mark
What about the Met's role?
Mimi
It says it received the letter in 2019 and shared it with the Sussexes, but didn't pass the contents to other agencies. It's now reviewing how it handled it.
Luke
Worth noting that the review is the Met's own, and we don't yet know what it will examine or conclude.
Mark
What is the strongest part of the account so far?
Mimi
That several authorities are involved. The FBI says it is aware of the allegations, and the Philippines task force on trafficking and child sexual exploitation says it is investigating.
Luke
Aware and investigating are not findings. The claim about images comes from Markle's son, relayed through the Sun and reported police statements. Nothing here says investigators have verified it.
Mark
And Markle's response?
Mimi
He denies all the allegations. He admitted paying for sex on past visits but denied sleeping with underage girls or possessing abuse images.
Luke
Right, and that stays a denial against an unproven allegation. Neither side has been tested in court here.
Il Polso
- A letter from a long-dead former wife has pulled a private estrangement into a public criminal inquiry.
- Allegations of child sexual abuse imagery at a former Philippines home have set police, task forces and the FBI in motion.
- The Metropolitan Police is reviewing why a 2019 letter was shared with the Sussexes but went no further.
- Markle firmly denies possessing abuse material, even as he admits to paying for sex on past visits, leaving the matter unresolved and under investigation.
Some family stories carry their wounds for decades before they break into public view. A letter written years ago by Thomas Markle's first wife, now deceased, has surfaced as a grave accusation against him, reaching London's police, then the Sussex household, and now investigators on two continents. Markle, now 82 and recovering from an amputation, denies the charges while admitting to behaviour that has shadowed his past. What remains is a question older than any single case: what a society owes to the children at the centre of such claims, and how carefully its institutions must weigh a word once it has been spoken.
A letter sent to the Metropolitan Police in 2019, containing claims about Thomas Markle, has been traced to his first wife, Roslyn Loveless, who divorced him in 1975 and has since died. The Met confirmed it received the letter, shared it with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the time, and did not pass its contents to other agencies. It is now reviewing how that decision was made.
Meghan Markle said she had been told of "disturbing allegations" about her father in 2018. She wrote that she was deeply distressed and that her thoughts were with any children who may have been harmed, and she explained why she had largely cut off contact with him and kept him from her children. She is reported to have warned him, in a letter sent while he was recovering in hospital in the Philippines after his leg was amputated, that he would never meet his grandchildren.
Her half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr., has told the Sun that he found a stash of images at their father's former home in the Philippines, and that he reported them to police and to the FBI in July. He apologised to Meghan for having sided with their father for nearly a decade. The FBI says it is aware of the allegations, and Philippine authorities have said their anti-human trafficking and child exploitation task force is investigating.
Markle, 82, denies the allegations. He has acknowledged paying for sex on past visits to the Philippines but denies sleeping with underage girls and denies ever possessing abuse images. He is now living in a Florida rehabilitation centre, relearning to walk. The outcome of the Philippine investigation, any FBI action, and the Met's review will determine what comes next.
A letter sent to the Metropolitan Police in 2019, making a number of claims relating to Thomas Markle, was written by his first wife, Roslyn Loveless, the BBC understands. Loveless has since died. She divorced Markle in 1975, four years before he married Doria Ragland, the mother of the Duchess of Sussex.
The Met confirmed on Saturday that it received a letter relating to Markle in 2019 and that it was shared with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the time. The force has said it did not pass the contents of the letter to other law enforcement agencies. It is now reviewing how it handled the matter.
Meghan confirmed the letter's existence in a statement on Friday, saying she had been informed about "disturbing allegations" concerning her father in 2018. She wrote that she was deeply distressed and that her thoughts were with any children who may have been harmed. She said she hoped it could be understood why she had largely cut off contact with him and did not allow him contact with her children.
Loveless was the mother of Meghan's half-siblings, Samantha Markle and Thomas Markle Jr. Meghan, born in 1981, is the only daughter of Markle and Ragland. She has been estranged from her father since 2018. The BBC understands she broke contact with him last year, telling him that she and the authorities knew he had abused young girls. Sources close to the duchess said she warned him in a letter, sent while he was in hospital in the Philippines after having his leg amputated, that he would never meet his grandchildren.
The public attention follows a claim made on Friday by Meghan's half-brother to the Sun. He said he found a stash of images belonging to his father at Markle's former home in the Philippines. He is reported to have told police that the items included child abuse videos and pictures. He also apologised to Meghan for initially siding with their father during the long estrangement, saying he had "been protecting the wrong person for the past nine years".
It is understood he contacted the US Federal Bureau of Investigation about the images in July, and the FBI has since confirmed it is aware of the allegations. Officials in the Philippines told the BBC on Friday that the country's anti-human trafficking and child sexual exploitation task force is investigating allegations relating to Markle.
Markle, who is 82 and based in the US, denies all such allegations. In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, he acknowledged paying for sex on past visits to the Philippines. He denied sleeping with underage girls and denied ever possessing child abuse images.
Markle moved to the Philippines last year after a series of strokes. He is reportedly now living in a Florida rehabilitation centre, learning to walk again after his leg was amputated.
What to watch next: the outcome of the Philippine task force's investigation, any action by the FBI, and the findings of the Met's review into why a letter shared with the Sussexes in 2019 went no further.
Citazioni salienti
I am deeply distressed... my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed.— Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, in a statement on Friday
He had "been protecting the wrong person for the past nine years".— Thomas Markle Jr., as reported by the Sun
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Crime & Justice