Thomas Markle Arrested in Florida and Charged Over Alleged CSAM Found in California Storage Units

Federal agents have arrested Thomas Markle Sr. in Florida and charged him with possession of child sexual abuse material after investigators searched two storage units registered to him in the Los Angeles area.

The US Department of Justice announced on 6 November that Markle, 82, faces one federal count. According to a criminal complaint filed in the Central District of California, the alleged offence occurred on or around 30 October 2026.

The complaint alleges that investigators found suspected child sexual abuse material in the storage units, including images in which a witness identified Markle alongside a child. The allegations have not been proven in court.

Markle previously denied allegations concerning child sexual abuse material. The Associated Press reported his denial before the federal complaint became public.

🚨 Thomas Wayne Markle, 82, of Lakeland, Florida, was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint alleging he kept child sexual abuse material (CSAM), including sexually explicit photographs of himself with prepubescent girls, in two Los Angeles-area storage units he rented for nearly two decades. If convicted, Markle would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) November 6, 2026

What the federal complaint alleges

According to an FBI agent’s affidavit, investigators received reports from multiple witnesses in October 2026. One witness described the discovery of suspected child sexual abuse material among Markle’s possessions in the Philippines. Another told the FBI about a storage unit in California.

Agents subsequently obtained search warrants for two units registered to Markle in the Central District of California, the affidavit says. Investigators allege that records showed he had rented both units since approximately 2008.

The FBI says agents seized approximately 27 items from the first unit and 51 from the second. The items included slides, film negatives and books that investigators say contained suspected child sexual abuse material. The affidavit states that agents had not completed their review of the evidence.

After converting some film negatives into digital photographs, an agent reported identifying suspected abusive images. The affidavit says a witness who had known Markle since the 1970s identified him as the adult man in two of the images.

The details in the complaint are disturbing. The children represented in abusive material are not abstract evidence or background to a headline. They are people whose safety, dignity and privacy must remain central to the investigation.

The investigation in the Philippines

Authorities in the Philippines have also been investigating allegations involving material connected to Markle. The Associated Press reported that Thomas Markle Jr. had made allegations about material he said he found among his father’s belongings at a former home in the Philippines. The director of the country’s National Bureau of Investigation told the AP that the FBI had requested assistance in looking into those allegations.

The US affidavit refers to a witness who reported finding suspected material among Markle’s possessions in the Philippines. It does not identify that witness by name. The federal charge described in the complaint concerns alleged possession in California.

What happens next?

The Justice Department said Markle was expected to make an initial appearance in federal court in Tampa on 6 November. The outcome of that appearance was not confirmed in the sources available at the time of writing.

The allegations set out in the complaint are serious and require a thorough investigation. They remain allegations, and a court has not found Markle guilty of the charge.

Investigators must now examine the evidence, identify any children at risk or harmed, and pursue every credible lead. The priority must be protecting children and ensuring that anyone responsible for their exploitation is held accountable.