London: The police inquiry into the Duchess of Sussex’s estranged father has been extended to include his son, Thomas Markle jnr.
The development, announced by Philippines Interior Secretary Juanito Victor Remulla, means the duchess’s half-brother, 60, is a “person of interest” in the ongoing investigation.
Speaking at a press conference in Manila, Remulla said: “There are signs that point that the son is involved in the crime as well. But only as a person of interest so far – he is not yet treated as a suspect.”
Remulla suggested that the police had received information about underage girls being taken to Markle jnr’s home at Cordova, in the Philippines, and said: “We had witnesses who testified that underage girls were being brought to his house, with ring lights, through the windows.”
Police had asked Markle Jr about the claim of underage girls, and he had claimed to investigators he was merely “doing TikTok [videos]”, Remulla said.
Turning to the investigation into Thomas Markle snr , Remulla said: “We recovered 7500 photos and one video, all of underage male and females of Asian, Latina and European descent ... they [police] presented it to me, but I didn’t want to look because I can’t unsee it.
“It is one of the most implorable (sic) displays of impunity towards sexual activity that I’ve ever seen, and it’s really disturbing.”
Markle jnr told Britain’s The Sun on Wednesday about the most recent raids on his father’s storage units in Mexico, and also mentioned storage units in Los Angeles. He said: “I think it’s important the FBI searches the LA units as soon as possible. The more I’m learning about my dad, the more I am deeply shocked.”
Remulla, whose government position is equivalent to the minister for home affairs in the UK and Australia, has described Markle snr as “a possible sex offender of the grossest kind”.
Markle snr, 82, has admitted paying for sex in the Philippines but strongly denied the child abuse allegations, and suggested he was “set up”.
His admissions come after his son claimed to have found four storage boxes at his father’s home in the Philippines, which contained “hundreds, if not thousands” of child sex abuse images.
Police and FBI agents have since been investigating whether Markle snr was in possession of any illegal images while living in the Philippines and in Mexico, where other suspect pictures were reportedly found in one of his storage units.
On Tuesday, it emerged that police in the Philippines had found child abuse images on digital devices allegedly belonging to Markle snr.
Markle jnr was recently interviewed at his home in Cordova as part of an international, multi-agency meeting over Microsoft Teams, according to The Sun .
He gave his statement to an FBI agent based in Florida and an officer who specialises in child sex abuse cases.
An assistant US attorney, an FBI legal attache in the Philippines and numerous senior police officers were also reportedly on the call.
The duchess’s estranged father moved from Mexico to the Philippines in January last year before relocating to Florida in May this year, after the amputation of his lower leg . Last Friday, he was reportedly moved into a care home for dementia patients.
If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline 131 114, or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636.
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