Met Police refers itself to watchdog over handling of Thomas Markle allegations

The Metropolitan Police has voluntarily referred itself to the police complaints watchdog over its handling of a letter containing serious allegations against Thomas Markle, the estranged father of the Duchess of Sussex.

The referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) follows an internal review into decisions made by Scotland Yard after receiving the correspondence in January 2019.

The document was sent to the Met’s Protection Command and specifically addressed to the Fixated Threat Assessment Centre, a specialist unit that assesses risks and threats to public figures.

Commander Adam Slonecki, head of the Met’s Protection Command, confirmed the voluntary referral focuses on two specific actions: the force’s decision not to alert other law enforcement bodies at the time, and its choice to share the correspondence with the private office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

“In January 2019, the Met received a letter addressed to our Protection Command, specifically the Fixated Threats Assessment Centre,” Slonecki said in a statement.

“The author of the letter suggested they were writing to raise concerns relating to the security of the Duchess of Sussex. While the letter did not actually contain any information specifically related to security matters, it did contain a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom.

“The letter was assessed and subsequently passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their awareness. The details of the allegations in the letter were not shared with other law enforcement agencies.

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“In recent days, the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards has carried out an initial review into our actions following receipt of the letter in 2019.

“Following that review, a voluntary referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) 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.”

The force also confirmed it is now actively preparing to forward the allegations to relevant overseas law enforcement bodies, stating that the formal referral process is under way and expected to conclude in the coming days.

The scrutiny deepened following reports that Scotland Yard had misplaced the original 2019 physical correspondence.

Investigators were only able to re-examine the full details after Meghan provided the force with a copy she had retained.

Sources close to the duchess indicated she was deeply distressed and frustrated by the revelation that authorities had failed to pass the claims to appropriate investigatory bodies years earlier.

The allegations outlined in the letter reportedly accused Thomas Markle of possessing child sexual abuse images.

Thomas Markle has vehemently denied the claims, describing them as entirely fabricated and false.

The IOPC will now assess the Metropolitan Police’s referral to determine whether an independent investigation into officer conduct or wider force handling is required, or whether the matter can be returned to Scotland Yard for a local inquiry.

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Following revelations surrounding the Metropolitan Police’s handling of the 2019 correspondence, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, addressed the matter directly, revealing she had long been aware of the claims after authorities initially brought the material to her attention.

In her formal statement, she said: “In 2018, a letter was sent to the Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection. That letter was subsequently shared with me. It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these 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. I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families.

“Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children.“

A spokesperson for the Duchess later addressed the discrepancy between her recollection of 2018 and the Met’s confirmation that the correspondence was officially received in January 2019, noting that the variation of a few months was “an understandable consequence of that passage of time”.