Prince Harry will protect new girlfriend Meghan Markle by hiring £50,000-a-year retired cop as bodyguard
PRINCE Harry is set to hire a retired cop at £50,000-a-year to act as a bodyguard for his new girlfriend Meghan Markle, it’s been reported.
The royal wants to ensure the 35-year-old is protected while she’s in the UK and will reportedly fund the costs for the ex-Scotland Yard Personal Protection Officer himself.
It comes just a week after Harry, 32, confirmed his relationship with the American actress, while making an unprecedented appeal for the couple to be left in peace.
A senior inside security source told the : “HRH has made it clear that he believes Miss Markle’s personal safety is paramount and that the behaviour of some elements of the media and press has been grossly unacceptable.
“But in the end it comes down to a matter of cost, who is paying for what. Protecting the Royal Family is a hugely expensive business.”
It’s commonplace for senior members of the Royal family to hire retired so14 officers from the police department at a reported cost of £50,000 annually.
Prince Charles employed his own former Personal Protection Officer (PPo) – the late Sgt. Andy Crichton – to watch over the Duchess of Cornwall prior to their marriage, after upset women reportedly threw bread rolls at her in a supermarket.
The prince and Miss Markle, who is best know for her role in the TV drama “Suits”, have reportedly been an item for two months and the actress has been staying at Kensington Palace.
A second source told the newspaper that blood royal princesses, though protected around the clock, don’t have their protection completely funded.
Prince Harry received more than £10 million in inheritance from his mother Princess Diana after his 30th birthday in September.
He’s said to be putting an annual sum of £50,000 of his own money towards keeping Miss Markle protected.
In a statement, released by Kensington Palace last week, Harry said his new love interest was being harassed and in a sign of how serious it is, made an unprecedented appeal for them to be left in peace.
A statement was released last week warning that Meghan Markle has faced alleged harassment in recent weeks
Meghan is believed to be taking some time off from filming with celebrity website Page Six reporting she told bosses she had “something important to do”.
Prince Harry was pictured on Tuesday wearing a bracelet he shares with girlfriend as he attended a charity event at Fulham’s Hurlingham Club.
The royal made an impromptu and impassioned speech to a HIV choir, telling them to speak out about their illness and help end the stigma around the condition.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368.