Meghan Markle faced 'disgusting and very real' threats in UK, says MET Police officer

Meghan Markle received real and dangerous threats to her life while she lived in the U.K. according to the former head of counterterrorism for the Metropolitan Police in London, Anil Kanti "Neil" Basu.

He said the Duchess of Sussex's life was at risk more than once. He spoke about the investigations and the actions that were taken to address these threats in her life in a new interview with Cathy Newman for Channel 4 News.

Basu was in charge of royal protection, among others, and when asked to characterise these threats that not just Meghan Markle but also Prince Harry received he replied, "disgusting and very real."

He said, "I've talked publicly for many years about the threat of extreme right-wing terrorism in this country. I've often been misquoted as taking my eye off the ball as though I think that was the biggest threat. I've never called it the biggest threat but it was the fastest-growing. My wonderful friend and counterpart at MI5 will tell you exactly the same thing."

Newman asked if there were "many serious, credible threats against Meghan Markle" that came from the right-wing extremists and he answered, "absolutely."

Basu said, "If you'd seen the stuff that was written and you were receiving it — the kind of rhetoric that's online — if you don't know what I know, you would feel under threat all of the time."

He said they had teams investigating these threats to Meghan Markle's life and "people have been prosecuted for those threats."

In his interview with Tom Bradby in 2019, Prince Harry also talked about the threats Meghan Markle received. He and the duchess also spoke about their decision to leave the U.K. because of the alleged death threats and racism during their Oprah interview in 2021.

The interview with Basu only confirms what the couple has been telling the public about the threats they faced while in the U.K. It comes as no surprise as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been vocal in the past about their need for security while they are in the country. The Duke of Sussex even took the Home Office to court for not allowing him to personally fund his family's police protection during visits to the U.K.