The child sexual abuse allegations involving Thomas Markle, the father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, have taken another turn. About a week after reports emerged that his son, Thomas Markle Jr., had alerted authorities, claiming his father possessed boxes of child sexual abuse material, Mexican police raided an abandoned storage unit linked to the elder Markle on Saturday. The raid came a day after the Daily Mail alerted the FBI to what it described as a disturbing collection of child sexual abuse material stored at the site.
Officers from Mexico's National Guard, who identified themselves as state sex crimes investigators, arrived at a storage unit measuring approximately 5 by 10 feet (1.5 by 3 meters), located about 3 miles (5 kilometers) from Markle's former home in Rosarito.
The team included forensic computer experts, a crime scene investigator and representatives of the Baja California state attorney general's office. They were seen peering into the unit with a flashlight and searching through the neglected boxes inside.
One agent appeared particularly shocked and exclaimed in Spanish, "Ay cabron," an expression that can mean something between "Holy crap" and "Oh, damn," as he examined the materials, according to an eyewitness.
A copy of the search warrant obtained by the Daily Mail revealed that investigators had received judicial authorization to search for "evidence consisting of child sexual abuse material," as well as evidence relating to the alleged commission of aggravated human trafficking.
According to a source familiar with the investigation, officers cataloged and seized items including a computer, USB drives, VHS tapes and a stack of magazines. They then closed the unit and sealed it with an official seizure notice.
The raid on Baja Storage, a gated storage facility about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south of the U.S. border, came after the Daily Mail alerted authorities that Unit 22 contained photographs of naked Asian females and magazines depicting the sexual abuse of children.
Following the raid, Markle's storage container was locked and covered with Mexican National Guard notices reading "Aseguramiento de inmuebles," indicating that the property and its contents had been seized.
Hours before the raid, the elder Markle was photographed being moved between assisted living facilities in Lakeland, Florida, in a wheelchair, accompanied by his daughter Samantha and her boyfriend, Mark Phillips.
The Daily Mail's reporting team learned of the storage container last week while investigating the past of Markle, 82, in the gated expatriate community of San Antonio del Mar. The container was rented to the Duchess of Sussex's father in 2017, but he fell behind on payments about two years ago and moved to the Philippines in early 2025 without emptying it.
The business's employees and owner said they knew nothing about the container's contents and were shocked by the discovery. Alongside ordinary family mementos, letters and photographs, investigators found black-and-white photographs of naked Asian women, some of whom appeared conspicuously young, as well as books and magazines that sexualized children and referred to them as "Lolitas."
Also found were strips of 35mm negatives depicting voyeuristic images of children on a beach, along with dusty VHS tapes bearing titles including "Boys - Brother and Sister - Russian XX" and "Manila Nites."
The storage unit also contained old computers, hard drives and a paper plate with the words "DARK WEB" written in red ink alongside various internet addresses.
The information provided by the Daily Mail to authorities prompted an immediate investigation involving American and Mexican officials.
According to the report, FBI agents working out of the Tampa Field Office, near the assisted living facility in Lakeland, Florida, where Markle is staying, are among those involved in the investigation. FBI officials based in Southern California, whose role includes coordinating law enforcement operations with their counterparts south of the border, are also involved.
According to the search warrant obtained by the Daily Mail, prosecutors in Baja California asked Judge Estefany Moreno Gutierrez of the state's judicial branch to authorize the search during a closed-door court hearing on Friday.
Meghan and Thomas Markle
(Photo: Courtesy)
The warrant specified that the search would be conducted to locate and secure evidence of child sexual abuse material, including printed materials, USB storage devices and memory cards used in cameras and mobile phones.
It also authorized investigators to search for communications devices, including mobile phones, laptops, desktop computers, tablets and other electronic devices that might contain videos featuring sexually explicit content.
Markle responded to the raid, telling the Daily Mail: "I had no storage units in Rosarito!"