Thomas Markle, father of Meghan, cut off his ankle monitor, DOJ says

Federal prosecutors are asking a judge to revoke the release of Thomas Markle, the estranged father of Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, after the 82-year-old allegedly cut off an ankle monitor while awaiting trial over the possession of child sexual abuse materials. Markle was arrested on Friday after officials found child sexual abuse images in storage units belonging to him in California, including sexually explicit photographs of himself with minors, the Justice Department said. He was taken into custody in Tampa, Florida, where he was released under house arrest. He allegedly cut off his ankle monitor at 1:45 a.m. Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Tuesday. “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. FBI investigators found slides, film negatives, and books that contained “suspected child pornography” in two storage units rented by Markle in Los Angeles, according to court documents. The film negatives including images of naked “pre-pubescent” girls with an adult male, who a witness positively identified as Markle, the FBI said. One unit had mail bearing the name Thomas Markle and an international driver’s permit with his name, birthdate and a photo appearing to be him, according to a criminal complaint. Markle’s storage rentals date as far back as the summer of 2008, the complaint said. The seizure last week came weeks after news that an investigation was opened into Markle in the Philippines over allegations that he kept similar images at his home while living there. There were thousands of photos featuring “underage male and females” recovered, authorities said. Markle has been living in a senior care facility in Florida, according to The Associated Press. He was reportedly forced to return to the U.S. after living in Philippines after he suffered a stroke a leg was amputated. A judge ordered an independent psychological evaluation to see if Markle was fit to stand trial. The order noted Markle’s health condition, age and lack of recall as reasonable cause to believe he may have some mental “disease or defect” that would render him mentally incompetent. Markle has denied the allegations, describing the accusations as “sick lies.” An attorney for Markle in court records for Markle did not immediately return a request for comment from NBC News on Tuesday. A spokesperson for the Prince Harry and Meghan declined to comment on the arrest last week. Last month, Meghan revealed that she had been made aware of allegations against her father years ago. She said in a statement that she was “deeply disturbed” by the allegations and that her relationship has been limited with him over the years. He did not attend her wedding to Prince Harry in 2018, which was the subject of widespread media scrutiny. Meghan said she has also chosen to keep her children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, away from her father for their protection. “The breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine,” she said. British police confirmed that Meghan was passed a letter in January 2019 which contained “a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom.” London’s Metropolitan Police referred itself to the country’s policing watchdog over the handling of the allegations, saying it had not informed other law enforcement agencies of the allegations.