Thomas Wayne Markle, the 82-year-old estranged father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, was arrested by federal agents in Florida and charged with one count of possession of child pornography.
Federal authorities arrested Thomas Markle on Friday morning at a care home in Lakeland, near Tampa, according to statements from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Federal agents seized around 27 items from the first unit and approximately 51 items from the second unit. The arrest follows an international investigation involving law enforcement agencies in the United States, Mexico, and the Philippines, stemming from the discovery of suspected child sexual abuse material in storage units rented by Markle.
Federal Agents Recover Explicit Items from Storage Units
According to the criminal complaint filed in federal court, investigators recovered approximately 78 items—including slides, film negatives, and books containing suspected child sexual abuse material—from two Los Angeles-area storage units. Investigators stated that Markle had rented both units since 2008, with auto-pay maintaining the rentals through the previous month. The affidavit details that federal agents found multiple explicit images, including two photographs depicting an adult man with a nude prepubescent girl, whom a witness identified as Markle.
The investigation into the storage units involved specialized coordination, with the FBI utilizing agents across Los Angeles, Tampa, and Mexico, alongside Marshall Islands Law Enforcement Attaches. In the course of examining the material, agents converted film negatives into color digital photographs to aid in the investigation.
BREAKING – The Duchess of Sussex’s father, Thomas Markle, has been arrested by the FBI at his care home in Florida, on suspicion of possessing child abuse material. Sources close to Meghan say she is not commenting again “at this time.”
First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli addressed the severity of the case in a press release.
These allegations are extremely serious, and we will prosecute Mr. Markle to the fullest extent of federal law.
Bill Essayli, First Assistant United States Attorney
FBI Director Kash Patel also issued a statement regarding the bureau’s ongoing investigation and inter-agency cooperation.
Thomas Wayne Markle, 82, of Lakeland, Florida, was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint filed in our district that charges him with possession of child pornography, a felony that carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. An affidavit filed… pic.twitter.com/qg5jvAB1Wb
Mr. Markle allegedly targeted innocent children and sought to steal their innocence through his criminal actions. This FBI will use every single resource at our disposal to protect innocent kids – any predator who targets children will have zero safe haven in this country or anywhere they try to hide.
Director Kash Patel, FBI
If convicted on the federal charge, Markle faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Son Prompts International Investigation After Discovering Suspicious Materials
The federal case developed after authorities in the Philippines initiated an investigation into Markle last month. Reports indicated that his son, Thomas Markle Jr., contacted law enforcement and the FBI after discovering suspicious materials among boxes left behind at his father’s former residence in Cebu City. Mexican authorities likewise searched a storage unit linked to Markle in Rosarito following notifications from journalists.
Markle, a retired television lighting and photography director who underwent a leg amputation in the Philippines in December 2025, returned to the United States earlier this year. Prior to his arrest, he denied the accusations, telling the Daily Mail that the claims were untrue and calling them sick lies.
Duchess of Sussex Responds to Revelations
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has been estranged from her father since 2018, when he did not attend her wedding to Prince Harry.
Thomas Markle, the estranged father of Meghan Sussex, has been arrested by the FBI on one count of possessing child pornography. (https://t.co/jwTc4Rli0Y) pic.twitter.com/ZCG2FP6cNU
I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications’ distortion over the years, any distance from my father and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children was for one reason: to protect them.
The duchess’s half-brother, the duchess’s half-brother
In her statement, the duchess revealed that she first learned of troubling allegations against her father in 2018, after a letter sent to London’s Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection was shared with her. She also stated that she confronted her father in December 2025 regarding child abuse allegations, informing him via letter that he would not meet her children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the arrest.
He was scheduled for an initial appearance on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa.
FULL STORY: Thomas Markle Snr facing one charge of Possession of Child Pornography by the FBI. It's alleged "he kept child sexual abuse material, including sexually explicit photgraphs of himself with prepubescent girls, in two Los Angeles storage units he rented for nearly two…
Earlier coverage: Markle Sr. Investigated for Child Porn and Misconduct
NEW: An arrest has been reported in Florida by the FBI at the care home where Thomas Markle Snr had been living. It is in additional to the police investigation in The Philippines into material found at Mr Markle's home there. And the sharing by London's Metropolitan Police of…
More on Child Porn
Thomas Wayne Markle, 82, of Lakeland, Florida, was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint filed in our district that charges him with possession of child pornography, a felony that carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. An affidavit filed… pic.twitter.com/j9tIgsw2u1
Thomas Markle, the estranged father of Meghan Markle, was arrested in Florida on Friday for allegedly keeping child sexual abuse material, including sexually explicit photographs of himself with prepubescent girls. 🔗 https://t.co/lP9xG4Pdle pic.twitter.com/lnPDlCE11P