Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s mansion in California has been the subject to two intruder scares within the last 12 days, according to reports. The luxury pad in Montecito where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex reside with their children Archie, three, and Lilibet, one, was attended by police on separate occasions.
Officers recorded visiting the $14 million property on May 19 at 5.44pm after reports of a trespasser. They then responded to a second intruder report on May 31 at 3.21pm – a matter of hours before Harry and Meghan flew back from the UK after attending the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The Royal couple have renewed the lease on Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, which receives 24-hour police protection, despite quitting royal duties and moving to California in 2020. Harry recently won permission to sue the Home Office over his security arrangements, having begun a legal challenge in February after it refused to allow him to pay for his own protection when visiting the UK, according to Mirror Online.
The ruling at the High Court means he will now be able to take the case for a judicial review after Harry and his team had argued that his US-based entourage do not have sufficient jurisdiction in Britain to be able to protect him properly. Police records show Meghan and Harry’s US home has produced six security alert calls in the last 14 months.
Both calls in May were logged as “trespasser”, “property crimes” and “suspicious circumstances”. The Sun reports the first incident happened on Harry and Meghan’s fourth wedding anniversary.
Royal expert Angela Levin told The Sun: “Maybe Harry should concentrate more on the security in California rather than making complaints about his security in Britain. After two intruder alerts in 12 days, surely he should be making the protection of his family in the US his priority.”
Previous incidents at the Sussexes’ property this year include an alarm being “mistakenly tripped” on New Year’s Day and a “miscellaneous dispatch” on June 8. A man was reportedly arrested after allegedly trespassing at the couple’s home on Christmas Eve 2020 and returning on Boxing Day.
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