Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's LA Home Is Being Inundated by Drones
The couple has reported at least five incidents to the LAPD.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, like many of us in the U.S., spent Memorial Day weekend taking in the sun, sitting poolside with their family, and...spotting a small drone flying just a couple feet above their head? Okay, most families didn't have to deal with that last one, but Meghan and Harry did. In a horrible invasion of privacy on Memorial Day, a drone was reported flying just a mere 20 feet over their residence in LA, capturing footage of their small family get-together. The worst part? This wasn't the first time.
According to the Daily Beast, at least five drone-related incidents have been reported to the LAPD's non-emergency line made by the couple. The incidents took place at their home on May 9, 19, 20, 21, and 25, and were all reported to the authorities. A report for the Memorial Day attack said that "a drone was flying over residences" and that it is "an ongoing drone issue," according to a spokesperson from the LAPD.
The drones are believed to be controlled by paparazzi, who most recently took photos of the couple hanging out poolside with Archie on Memorial Day and have also taken videos of the former ex-royals outside with their dog. Despite their assumption that the paparazzi are operating them, the royal couple have to treat the drones as potential terrorist threats, a source close to the couple said to the Daily Beast.
"They see these drones coming in at them, and they guess that they are being operated by photographers, but they can't just assume that," the friend said. "Meghan received racist death threats at the time of her wedding, so the terror threat is very real for them."
After all, people can go out and purchase a drone for under $1,000 and not have it registered with the Federal Aviation Administration, allowing them to photograph or record photos of the family and having the footage transferred to their phone in a matter of minutes. (Why you wouldn't use your new toy to make a viral TikTok instead of invading people's privacy, I'll never understand.)
The friend continued to the publication: "Imagine if you were in their shoes facing that, how that would feel? To have drones buzzing around 20 feet above your head when you are trying to play with your son?"
The couple is currently in the process of hiring their own security team, according to The Sun. They's currently using the security staff who work the mansion they are staying in, which is owned by Tyler Perry.
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