Harry and Meghan in ‘near catastrophic’ two-hour car chase involving paparazzi

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle claim they were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” in New York involving “highly aggressive” paparazzi that lasted over two hours.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex said they and Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland were followed from a charity awards ceremony as they headed to a private residence.

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two [police] officers,” a spokesperson for the royal couple said.

The statement was a chilling echo of the 1997 chase through Paris that killed Harry’s mother, Princess Diana.

However, authorities gave a different account of events. The New York Police Department, which assisted the couple’s private security, said the journey had been “challenging” but “there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries or arrests.”

And the city’s mayor Eric Adams said the photographers had been “reckless” but he found it “hard to believe” there could have been a high-speed chase for two hours, not least because of the notorious traffic. Nonetheless, “if it’s 10 minutes, a 10-minute chase is extremely dangerous in New York City”.

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The incident involved half a dozen cars with blacked-out windows, driving dangerously and putting the lives of the couple and Ms Ragland in danger on Tuesday night, according to their spokesperson.

“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi,” they said.

The California-based couple had been staying at a private residence but decided against returning there as they did not wish to compromise their host’s safety.

“While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone’s safety,” the spokesperson said. “Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all involved.”

Pictures that have appeared on social media show Harry, Meghan and her mother sitting in the back of a New York taxi. The spokesperson said these showed “a small glimpse at the defense and decoys required to end the harassment”.

Reports suggest the group sought refuge in two police stations after the event finished at 10pm before finally returning to a friend’s home. The Telegraph report they left one police station in a taxi, to try and throw the paparazzi off, but they were photographed leaving. They then went to another police station before arriving at their final destination at 12:30am.

Paparazzi are said to have run a red light, reversed down a one-way street and mounted the pavement in the pursuit.

A man claiming be to the taxi driver, Sukhcharn Singh, told the Washington Post he would not describe the incident a chase, adding: “It wasn’t like a car chase in a movie.”

Meanwhile, Chris Sanchez, a member of the Sussexes security team, told CNN in an exclusive interview on Wednesday that he “had never” come close to the chaos he experienced on Tuesday night.

“What we were dealing with was very chaotic. There were about a dozen vehicles: cars, scooters and bicycles,” Mr Sanchez said. “The public [was] in jeopardy at several points. It could have been fatal. They were jumping curbs and red lights. At one point they blocked the limousine and started taking pictures until we were able to get out.”

“[I] was concerned about [Prince Harry and his wife] but more about the public because they [the paparazzi] were being so erratic,” Mr Sanchez added. “People were on sidewalks and crossing streets and the [paparazzi] were crossing red lights. We did everything by the letter of law.”

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Harry wrote extensively about his mother’s death in his bestselling memoir Spare and of his anger at press intrusion into the lives of the royal family.

He detailed how, prior to attending the 2007 Rugby World Cup semi-final in Paris when he was 23 years old, he asked the driver of his car to go through the tunnel where his mother was tragically killed.

Harry and Meghan stepped down from their royal roles in 2020 and moved to the United States in part because of what they described as intense media harassment.

He is currently involved in numerous High Court cases in London where he has accused newspapers of using unlawful methods to target him and his family.

He is also seeking to overturn a decision to remove his specialist police protection while in Britain. The couple fund their own security in the United States.

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Meghan had been in New York to accept the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Award with Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown.

With her mother in the audience, Meghan recounted how Ms. magazine was always in their house and how it affected her worldview.

“I am a woman who remains inspired and driven by this organisation,” she said, looking over at Ms. Foundation co-founder Gloria Steinem. “It allowed me to recognise that part of my greater value and purpose in life was to advocate for those who felt unheard, to stand up to injustice, and to not be afraid of saying what is true and what is just and what is right.”

The event was her first public appearance since she skipped the coronation of her father-in-law King Charles III earlier this month in order to stay at home in California for her son Prince Archie’s fourth birthday. Harry attended the coronation in London and then rushed back to California.