Thomas Markle Sr has entered a care home for dementia patients, it was reported last night.
The move could make it difficult for the FBI to investigate the Duchess of Sussex's father over child sex abuse allegations, according to a top lawye
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Markle, 82, who has been staying at a rehabilitation centre in Florida since May after having his lower left leg amputated, was transferred on Friday to another facility in the state specialising in 'memory care', The Sun reported.
It emerged he had been diagnosed with dementia after his son, Thomas Markle Jr, told police he had found a stash of child sex abuse images among his father's belongings in the Philippines, where the pair had lived until former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Sr returned to the US after his amputation.
Spencer Kuvin, a Florida-based lawyer who represents victims of the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, warned Markle's 'cognitive issues' could prevent police from questioning him. 'You can't just barge into a memory care facility and conduct an interview. Any decent lawyer would be able to get that interview struck [off] and the FBI know that,' he said.
Prosecutors in the Philippines said that Markle would face the 'full extent of the law' if found guilty of possessing child sex abuse images.
Those convicted of the crime can face 12 years in jail.
After the Daily Mail discovered child pornography in a storage unit Markle had rented in Rosarito, Mexico, on Friday, the FBI confirmed it had launched an investigation, with police seizing child abuse images from the lock-up.
Thomas Markle Sr (right) has entered a care home for dementia patients, it was reported last night
Markle told The Mail on Sunday he 'had no storage units in Rosarito'. He has described the allegations against him as 'sick lies'.
It comes amid claims that British police are hunting for the royal bodyguard who urged Meghan not to go public with sexual abuse allegations made against her father.
An officer with the Met's Royalty and Specialist Protection unit handed Meghan a letter – written by Markle's first wife, Roslyn Loveless – containing allegations against Markle in 2019 but failed to escalate it.
Meghan is understood to have wanted to speak out until the officer intervened. The Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating why police chiefs were not alerted to the letter and the force's failure to notify other law enforcement agencies around the world.
Meghan and Harry's private secretary and communications secretary were also unaware of the letter, The Sunday Times reported. It raises the prospect further alleged offending was allowed to go undetected until Thomas Jr's alleged discovery in the Philippines.
READ MORE: A.N. WILSON: If it's a royal cover-up, letter mystery could dwarf Andrew scandal
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