You will never see Archie, Lilibet: Meghan's letter to father amid child abuse probe

Meghan reportedly told Thomas Markle he would never meet Archie or Lilibet. The Philippine investigation has renewed scrutiny of British police handling in 2018.The Duchess of Sussex told her estranged father, Thomas Markle, that he would never meet his grandchildren after she learnt of disturbing allegations against him, the Daily Mail reported. As Filipino authorities investigate claims involving child sexual abuse images, the controversy has also raised questions about how British police handled information they received in 2018.Meghan, 45, sent a letter to her father last year while he was recovering in hospital in the Philippines after having his left leg amputated. According to The Sun on Sunday, the letter told the 82-year-old that he would never hear from her again or meet Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five.The Mail on Sunday reported that it was present when the letter, delivered in a white envelope, was handed to Thomas Markle. The newspaper said it did not ask about its contents out of respect for the Duchess's privacy.The allegations against Thomas Markle are now being investigated by authorities in the Philippines, where officers are examining digital material allegedly found on electronic devices belonging to him. He has denied having sex with underage girls and vowed to clear his name. MEGHAN SAYS DECISION WAS TO PROTECT HER CHILDRENMeghan issued a statement on Saturday saying she was "deeply distressed" by the latest developments and explaining why she had prevented her father from meeting her children.She said a letter containing allegations against Thomas Markle had been sent to the Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection in 2018. The letter was subsequently shared with her, and she was assured that the claims were being investigated. "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," Meghan was quoted as writing in the letter.She added, "I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families."The Duchess said the extent of what had emerged was "more sickening than one could ever imagine" and expressed hope that justice would be served, with the safety and protection of children remaining the priority.Meghan and her father have been estranged since 2018. Thomas Markle did not attend her wedding to Prince Harry that year after reportedly suffering a heart attack and saying he did not want to embarrass his daughter.King Charles, who was then Prince of Wales, walked Meghan down the aisle at Windsor Castle.PHILIPPINE AUTHORITIES EXAMINE DIGITAL EVIDENCEAuthorities in the Philippines are analysing digital images allegedly linked to Thomas Markle. Philippine Interior Minister Jonvic Remulla said the forensic examination was expected to be completed within a week."Right now all signs point to a possible sex offender of the grossest kind," Remulla said, while stressing that officials wanted to establish the facts before releasing their findings."We want to be sure before we release the findings," he said."Please give us a week to determine the contents and to come up with a definitive picture," he added.Police in the Philippines seized four boxes of evidence on Friday and spent nine hours with Thomas Markle's son, Tom Markle Jr., documenting the material.Officials confirmed on Saturday that officers from Cebu City's anti-trafficking and anti-child abuse task force were investigating Thomas Markle.The FBI has also said it is aware of the allegations and would "investigate any related allegations of federal violations of US law".SON CLAIMS HE FOUND CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE IMAGESMeghan's half-brother, Tom Markle Jr, 60, has claimed that he discovered a collection of child sexual abuse images on electronic devices belonging to their father in the Philippines.According to Tom Jr., he was looking through storage boxes for a phone for his fiance, Rose, when he opened a device and saw what he described as "vile" images of children. He then switched on a computer and allegedly found a screensaver containing "hundreds" of sexual pictures of children.The collection is alleged to include videos showing girls aged no more than 10 or 11 involved in sexual acts.A 35mm photograph reportedly shows a bearded man resembling Thomas Markle having sex with a young Asian girl. However, Thomas Markle denied being the man in the photograph."I have never been in a photograph like that," he said on Saturday.Tom Jr has since apologised publicly to Meghan, saying he regretted "protecting the wrong person for the past nine years"."Having seen what I've seen, I believe the man I've been defending and caring for is a monster," he said."I now know exactly why you don't talk to him any more and why you won't let him meet Harry or his grandchildren."THOMAS MARKLE DENIES HAVING SEX WITH UNDERAGE GIRLSThomas Markle has denied the allegations against him and said he would do whatever was necessary to clear his name."I have never had sex with anyone under the age of 18," he said.He admitted to The Mail on Sunday that he had paid for sex while living in the Far East, but denied sleeping with underage girls.The 82-year-old said he had travelled to the Philippines at least twice while single and "slept with prostitutes"."I like Asian women but that is not a crime," he said.He also acknowledged that he liked looking at photographs of attractive young women but insisted that he had always dated women of an appropriate age."Do I love beautiful young women? Yes. Do I like looking at pictures of beautiful women? Yes," he said."But I have always dated age-appropriate women and I know if you talk to my ex-wife [meaning Doria, Roslyn died in 2024] or any of my ex-girlfriends they would tell you we had a normal sex life."His most recent girlfriend in the Philippines was his nurse, Rio Canero, 46. There is no suggestion that she engaged in prostitution.FATHER SAYS HE HAS NOT HAD ACCESS TO DEVICESThomas Markle has disputed his son's account of how the electronic devices were found and said he had not had access to his computer or phones for nearly two years.He said his computer and old phone had been packed in Mexico and transported by boat to the Philippines, a process that took months."I kept asking my son for my computer and he said it was coming. He would never give it to me and I didn't understand why," he said.Thomas Markle said Tom Jr had told him that the boxes were being stored at a hotel in Cebu City, where the pair stayed when they first arrived in the Philippines in January 2025.The two later lived in a neighbouring high-rise before moving to two houses outside the city. Thomas Markle said he stayed at the houses for only a few days before suffering a serious blood clot.He subsequently moved from hospital to a long-term care facility before returning to the US in May this year for medical treatment."I have not had my computer or phones for nearly two years," he said. "If there is anything bad on there it was put there by someone else."Thomas Markle moved to Cebu City from Mexico last year. Following the amputation of his left leg in December last year, he is now in a nursing facility in Florida, where he is learning to walk with a prosthetic limb.MET POLICE FACES QUESTIONS OVER HANDLING OF ALLEGATIONSThe case has also prompted questions about the Metropolitan Police's handling of information it received in 2018.Meghan said last week that she had been assured the allegations against her father were being investigated. However, the Met admitted on Saturday that it had failed to pass on details of the alleged offending outside the UK to other law enforcement agencies.The force said it may refer itself to the police watchdog over its handling of the case.Asked about the Met's handling of the matter, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner described it as "an operational issue".Speaking to Sky News, Rayner said Meghan had faced considerable intrusion into her family life."Meghan Markle has faced a tremendous amount of intrusion into her family. It must be difficult as a daughter to have all this out in the open," she said.Rayner, who is a mother herself, added that she understood the difficulty Meghan faced as the allegations and the estrangement from her father became public."Her estrangement from her father has been something that's been in the Press for some time. But she's been really clear now, I think, on the reasons, some of the reasons, why that is the case," she said."But at the heart of this, you've got a mother who is trying to raise her children and protect them, and to have a great family life, and that is obviously very difficult when you're in the public eye."MEGHAN'S HALF-SISTER QUESTIONS PHOTOGRAPH CLAIMMeghan's half-sister, Samantha, who is Thomas Markle's main caregiver, offered a different explanation for the photograph allegedly showing a man resembling their father with a young-looking Asian woman.She said that if such a photograph existed, the woman might have been one of his girlfriends.Samantha recalled that their father had dated a Japanese woman called Carolyn, whom she described as being in her thirties but looking much younger."Asian women have great skin and are small and petite. They look much younger than they are," she said.She also referred to another former girlfriend, Gail, describing her as Asian and saying she looked very young.Thomas Markle was married twice: first to Roslyn Loveless, the mother of Tom Jr and Samantha, and later to Doria Ragland, Meghan's mother. Roslyn died in 2024.The Daily Mail has contacted the Duchess of Sussex's representative for further comment.- Ends