Thomas Markle charged in US after discovery of alleged ‘sexually explicit photos’ with minors

Thomas Markle, father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has been charged in relation to alleged child sexual abuse material found in California.

The 82-year-old was taken into custody in Florida on Friday (Saturday morning AEDT), the US Department of Justice (DOJ) said.

“Thomas Wayne Markle, 82, of Lakeland, Florida, is charged with one count of possession of child pornography,” they said in a statement shortly after his arrest.

The retired Hollywood lighting director allegedly kept “sexually explicit photographs of himself with prepubescent girls, in two Los Angeles-area storage units he rented for nearly two decades”, the DOJ said.

Federal agents searched two storage units in the Los Angeles area and “seized approximately 78 items, including slides, film negatives, and books” that contained suspected child sexual abuse images, First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said.

FBI director Kash Patel said FBI agents worked together with the DOJ and "moved quickly" in the arrest of Markle.

“Mr. Markle allegedly targeted innocent children and sought to steal their innocence through his criminal actions,” Patel said in a statement.

"Working with our Justice Department partners, our agents moved quickly, identified and located the explicit material, and arrested Mr. Markle in Florida."

Markle is expected to make an initial appearance in federal court about 1.30pm on Friday (5.30am Saturday AEDT). He has not yet entered a plea.

If convicted, Markle could face up to 20 years in a federal prison.

A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they had no comment at this time.

The 82-year-old had moved into a nursing home for dementia patients in Lakeland, outside Tampa, just last week.

He revealed in an interview with Mail on Sunday late last month that he’d recently been “diagnosed with cognitive issues”.

Markle Sr moved back to the US from the Philippines in May, as he recovered from a leg amputation, due to a blood clot, and learned to walk again with a prosthetic limb.

His daughter Samantha Markle told The Sun she had moved him into his new $5800/month facility that specialises in “memory care”.