Watchdog investigating Met Police over handling of letter about Meghan's father

The Metropolitan Police is being investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over a letter containing allegations about the Duchess of Sussex's father, Thomas Markle Snr.

It comes as police in the Philippines investigate suspected child sex abuse images reportedly found at Mr Markle's former home.

Last Saturday, the Met Police said that in 2019 it had shared with Meghan a letter that contained "claims about alleged offending outside the UK" by Mr Markle, but it did not tell other law enforcement about the accusations.

The force has now said a voluntary referral has been made to the police watchdog "in respect of the decision not to inform other law enforcement agencies, and the decision to pass the letter to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex".

On Friday, the IOPC confirmed it is investigating the Met's "failure to pass on allegations of serious offending".

The Met has also now said it intends to "make a number of referrals to relevant overseas law enforcement agencies in relation to the allegations contained within the letter".

"That process is under way and will be completed in the coming days."

A spokesperson for the IOPC said: "Following a voluntary conduct referral from the Met Police, we have decided an independent investigation is required into its failure to pass on allegations of serious offending, contained in a letter it received in 2019, to relevant overseas authorities at the time."

An alleged data breach that saw information "passed on to a third party" will be investigated by the Met's own investigation process.

In a statement to Sky News last Friday, Meghan said she was "deeply distressed" by the allegations about her father and added that a letter had been sent to the Met which was subsequently shared with her.

Meanwhile, police in the Philippines have been handed a warrant by a court to start examining digital material alleged to contain child sex abuse images belonging to Mr Markle Snr.

The material, including devices and hard drives, was handed to the police by Thomas Markle's son, Thomas Markle Jr.

Thomas Markle Snr denies all the allegations.

It was reported by The Sun that Meghan's half-brother alleged he found a stash of images belonging to his father at his former home in the Philippines.

The report added that he also contacted the FBI in the US in July.

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Mr Markle Snr moved to the Philippines in 2025 after suffering a series of strokes.

In December last year, the duchess contacted her father via a letter after he had his left leg amputated and told a newspaper he did not want to die while distanced from his daughter.

He is now learning to walk again at a nursing facility in Florida.

Prince Harry and Meghan moved back to the UK in August, six years after they stepped down as working royals and relocated to the US.

(c) Sky News 2026: Watchdog investigating Met Police over handling of letter about Meghan's father