Meghan Markle's father arrested in US over child sex abuse images: media

Markle, 82, was taken into custody by FBI agents at the retirement home where he lives in the southern US state on Friday, according to reports by the Daily Mail and New York Post.

The arrest follows investigations in the Philippines and Mexico, where authorities reportedly recovered suspected child sexual abuse material from Markle's former residence and a storage unit he had rented.

Philippine police told AFP that three memory cards and a mobile phone contained child sexual abuse material.

Last Wednesday, the country's national police said the material had been discovered among items handed over by Markle's son, Thomas Markle Jr, as investigations into the allegations intensified.

Philippine National Police chief Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr cautioned against drawing conclusions before establishing the origin of the material and identifying those responsible.

"It is not enough to simply come across some materials and immediately draw conclusions," Nartatez said in a statement responding to questions about the investigation.

"We have to establish where these came from, who may be responsible, and whether Philippine laws were violated," he added.

The developments followed a raid by Mexican authorities on a storage unit rented by Markle in Baja California.

The state's prosecutor's office said it had received an anonymous tip about suspected child sexual abuse material in the unit.

Investigators established that Markle had stopped paying rent in 2024, although his belongings remained secured inside the facility.

During the search, authorities reportedly recovered magazines from Asia dating back approximately 20 years, alongside computer equipment which was taken for further examination.

The Sun first reported last month that Thomas Markle Jr had discovered the suspected material while going through boxes at his father's former home in the Philippines.

Markle had been living in Cebu before reportedly returning to the United States earlier this year.

His daughter, Meghan, has previously said she was "deeply distressed" by allegations that her father possessed child abuse images. She also said she had cut off contact between him and her children following what she described as previous "troubling and disturbing" allegations.