A 2019 Letter to London Police Alleges Thomas Markle Sr. Told His First Wife That He Traveled to the Philippines and Thailand “Because 12-Year-Olds Are Legal There“. The claim is by Roslyn Loveless, to whom Meghan Markle's father was married from 1965 to 1975. Loveless died in 2024.
“I interviewed Thomas Sr. — he denied the allegation but said he went to the Philippines and Thailand because 12-year-olds are legal there,” Loveless wrote in a seven-page letter. The document was sent to the Metropolitan Police’s Fixed Threat Assessment Centre — a unit that looks at risks to the British royal family and other public figures.
British police handed the letter to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry in 2019 but said it did not share its details with other law enforcement agencies. The Metropolitan Police is reviewing how it handled the document and is considering whether to refer it to the Independent Police Conduct Office.
The revelation of the letter comes amid an investigation in the Philippines into Thomas Markle Sr for allegedly possessing hundreds or thousands of child sexual abuse images. The materials were found in his former home in Cebu and his son Thomas Markle Jr. handed them over to local police.
Philippine Interior Secretary Johnwick Remulya told the Guardian that “all indications at this time point to a possible sex offender of the most serious kind”. He said authorities needed to complete forensic analysis before drawing any final conclusions, and said the results were expected within a week.
Markle denies the allegations. He told the Daily Mail that they were “sick lies” and that he had never sexually abused children. He admits to having paid for sex in the past, but denies having had sexual relations with anyone under the age of 18.
Meghan Markle said she was “deeply upset“ by the allegations against her father. She said she had received a letter in 2019 with “alarming and disturbing allegations“ and was assured that they were being investigated.
“Despite the distortions by some media outlets over the years, my distance from my father and my decision not to allow him to have contact with our children was for one reason: to protect them,” Meghan said. She added that she hopes justice will be served and that the safety and protection of children remain a priority.
In 2019, the age of sexual consent in the Philippines was 12, but paying for sex with someone under 18 was illegal. In 2022, the country raised the age of sexual consent to 16.