Thomas Markle, the estranged father of the Duchess of Sussex, has been arrested in Florida and charged with possessing child sexual abuse material after investigators searched two storage units in California. The case began with a disturbing discovery among his belongings in the Philippines, reportedly made by a family member, and has now become a federal investigation involving the FBI.

Markle, 82, was taken into custody on Friday, November 6, and faces one federal count of possession of child pornography. Prosecutors say officers seized around 78 items from the two storage units, including slides, film negatives and books containing suspected abuse material. The allegations have caused further distress for Meghan, who has previously said she kept her father away from her children to protect them. 

FBI traced the investigation to two storage units

According to the criminal complaint, US investigators received information in October from witnesses about suspected material among Markle’s possessions in the Philippines. One person had signed an affidavit describing its discovery, while another told the FBI that Markle rented a storage unit in the Los Angeles area. Agents obtained search warrants and examined two units registered to Markle. He had rented both since 2008 and had continued paying for them, with the latest payments made in October this year, according to the Justice Department.

The FBI seized approximately 27 items from one unit and 51 from the second. The materials included slides, film negatives and books. The affidavit says investigators identified suspected child sexual abuse images among the film negatives and describes photographs which they allege show Markle with prepubescent girls. A witness who had known him since the 1970s identified the adult man in two images as Markle, according to the court document.

The investigation is continuing and the material has not all been reviewed. The affidavit says agents had identified around 18 suspected images in one collection of film negatives at the time it was prepared. The 78 items seized should not be mistaken for 78 confirmed images. The criminal complaint sets out allegations supporting the charge; it is not a finding of guilt.

Arrested at Florida care facility

Markle was arrested in Lakeland, Florida, where he had been living after returning from the Philippines earlier this year. He appeared before a federal magistrate in Tampa on Friday and did not enter a plea. He was released on bond and returned to his assisted-living facility under home detention and electronic monitoring. Conditions also restrict his travel and access to internet-connected devices, according to reports of the court hearing.

He is required to undergo health evaluations. The case is expected to proceed in California, where the charge was filed.  If convicted, Markle could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. He is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court. The US Department of Justice has stressed that the complaint contains allegations only.

Meghan said she kept her children away to protect them

The arrest follows weeks of reports about the investigation in the Philippines, where Markle had been living. The Associated Press reported that Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr, found a collection of suspected abuse images while clearing out their father’s former home in Cebu City and contacted police and the FBI. Markle previously denied the accusations, describing them as “sick lies”, according to Reuters. Meghan said she was “deeply distressed” by the allegations and referred to a letter sent to London police in 2018 which contained what she described as troubling claims about her father.

She said she had been assured the allegations were being investigated. Meghan also addressed years of speculation about the estrangement, saying her decision to keep her father away from her and her children had been made to protect them.  There has been no public comment from Meghan’s representative on Friday’s arrest. The FBI investigation remains active, while the criminal case will determine whether the allegations can be proved in court.

Picture a horse nuzzling your hand in search of a carrot, or a table covered in ribbons, glitter and handmade stars. Saturday, November 14 brings two wonderful reasons to visit an animal sanctuary and help animals that were once given up on.

Two events, one lovely Saturday

Todos los Caballos del Mundo or “All the Horses in the World”, is hosting a guided visit for all the family and a Christmas crafts workshop on the same morning at Ctra. de Borrajo, s/n, 29120 Alhaurin el Grande, Malaga

This guided visit runs entirely in English, from 10:30am to 12:30. You can wander the paddocks, hear the animals’ stories and meet the people who look after them with children are very welcome.

Entry is by donation: €10 for adults and €5 for children under 12, and under-threes go free. All of it goes towards the animals’ care. Please bring carrots for the horses and leave pets at home so the residents stay calm.

Limited spaces are available so you need to book at todosloscaballosdelmundo.com. Go to the “Visits” section and select 14 November.

Make your own Christmas decorations

Prefer something creative? The sanctuary’s Christmas workshop, is a morning of festive crafting surrounded by nature and animals. Organisers promise personalised ornaments and some surprises. Think stars, snowflakes, Christmas trees and reindeers. No experience is needed, only a willingness to have fun.

Tickets cost €30 per person, and is open to everyone so friends, couples and families can all join in. Everyone takes home their own handmade creations, which makes this a lovely way to get ahead on tree decorations or gifts.

Capacity is also limited for this event. To reserve, send a WhatsApp message on 660 092 092.

The sisters behind the sanctuary

Sisters Concordia and Virginia Marquez Garcia founded the charity roughly two decades ago, after moving to Malaga and finding horses abandoned and mistreated. Today it cares for hundreds of animals, including donkeys, dogs and cats, many of them rescued from neglect or illness. It is one of the country’s largest equine sanctuaries.

Can’t make it? You can still help

Anyone unable to attend has other ways to lend a hand. The sanctuary welcomes donations of food, blankets, towels and other useful items. Volunteers are always appreciated, and following and sharing @todosloscaballosdelmundo on social media helps spread the word.

Whichever event you choose, you will leave with a warm feeling, and perhaps a new four-legged friend to sponsor. For more information visit the charity website or social media channels.

Cleaners, carers and seasonal workers across Spain are in line for a bigger pay packet from January, with the proposed minimum for hourly home help rising by 51 cents to €10.06. It’s part of a wider minimum wage rise the government wants signed off before voters go to the polls on Sunday November 29.

Hourly home help would rise to €10.06

Cleaners, carers and nannies paid by the hour would be entitled to at least €10.06 for every hour worked from January 1, up from €9.55, under a draft government order published this week.

That’s a rise of 51 cents, or roughly €80 over a year for someone who cleans for three hours every week and around €530 for a carer who works 20 hours a week. The rate applies to domestic workers who are paid by the hour and don’t live in the household, and the draft says the €10.06 has to cover every part of their pay for the hours actually worked.

The draft also says only cash counts towards the minimum, so payment in kind, such as food or accommodation, can’t be used to make up the difference. 

Short-term staff would get at least €60.88 a day

Workers on short contracts would see a bump too. Anyone hired for up to 120 days by the same company would be entitled to at least €60.88 for each legal working day, up from €57.82 this year.

That daily rate is meant to cover the worker’s share of Sundays, public holidays and the two extra annual payments (pagas extra, normally paid in summer and at Christmas), which is why it’s higher than the plain daily rate of €42.87 that applies to the standard minimum wage. Holiday pay for these workers is regulated separately.

The main minimum wage would climb €65 a month

For everyone else on the minimum, the draft sets €1,286 gross a month over 14 payments, or €18,004 a year for a full-time job. That’s a rise of 5.3 per cent, or €65 more a month than now and €910 across the year.

A group of experts advising the Labour Ministry had recommended 4.9 per cent, which would have meant €1,281 a month, so the government’s figure is slightly higher, only by about €5 a month. The unions CCOO and UGT had asked for at least 7 per cent, which would have meant around €1,306. They’ve made their backing conditional on the decree stopping employers from absorbing existing pay supplements into the new minimum, and hadn’t yet commented on the figure.

Anyone already earning more than €18,004 a year for full-time work isn’t affected, and the minimum will have risen by almost 75 per cent since 2018, when it was €736 a month. We compared the current €17,094 a year with UK minimum pay last month, in case you missed it.

Tax is still withheld, then claimed back

Elma Saiz, Spain’s Social Security minister and government spokesperson, said the Spanish tax agency would again approve a deduction so that minimum wage earners pay no income tax (IRPF).

This year, though, employers would still withhold tax from monthly pay, and the money could only be recovered by filing the annual tax return the following year. The draft also says regional or local rules, and private contracts that use the minimum wage as a reference, will stay on this year’s figure unless the parties agree otherwise.

Approval could land in the middle of the election campaign

The draft is open to comments until Monday November 16. The Council of Ministers could then approve it on Tuesday November 17 or Tuesday November 24, with the campaign officially starting on Friday November 13 and the general election on Sunday November 29.

Last year’s rise wasn’t signed off until Wednesday February 18, and it was backdated to January 1. The new draft is written to apply from January 1. Until the decree is approved and published in the BOE (Spain’s official state gazette), the €1,286 and the new hourly and daily rates remain proposals, so the final figures are worth checking once they appear there.