Daniel Portley-Hanks illegally obtained Meghan Markle’s social security number and other confidential information
A private investigator is revealing that a British tabloid paid him large sums of money to spy on Meghan Markle at the beginning of your relationship with Prince Harry.
Daniel Portley-Hanks, who is now a retired private investigator from Los Angeles, was hired by The sun for private information about Markle, now the Duchess of Sussex, The New York Times reported on Thursday. His services were obtained in 2016, when it became public that Markle and Prince Harry were dating.
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The times saw Portley-Hanks invoices for which he received $ 2,055 from the U.S. publisher, James Beal for information he obtained through the restricted TLOxp database service, where addresses, cell phone numbers and social security numbers can be found. The private information of Markle, her family and her ex-husband has been located and sold.
The US allows this information to be used in criminal and civil cases. However, it is against the law for such sensitive information to be sold to news outlets. Portley-Hanks said The Times that The Sun he wasn’t worried about compromising Markle’s privacy if it meant they could get a scoop.
The sun “He sent me a letter that I had to sign saying that I would not use any illegal method to locate people or do background checks,” he said in the interview. “Then the reporters came back to me and said, ‘But if you want to get work, keep doing what you’ve been doing’, with a nod and a wink.”
Portley-Hanks added that there was no doubt that Beal was aware of his actions.
“I strongly believe that James Beal knew that what I was supplying him was obtained illegally,” said Portley-Hanks.
Portley-Hanks provided a statement to lawyers representing Prince Harry, who is currently in dispute with the Rupert Murdoch-controlled The sun about phone hacking allegations. Beal declined to comment on The times.
Graham Johnson by independent upstart Byline Investigates discovered the full extent of Portley-Hank’s stock last summer. At the time, Portley-Hanks told the media that the British tabloids were trying to cover up their crimes. He was asked to remove “suspect” and “detective” after the uproar over the phone hacking scandals that plagued the British press.
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“This type of cover-up increased significantly in 2011-2012, following the phone hacking scandal in the UK,” he said last June. “Private investigators were taboo, because I think a lot of what we were doing was not allowed, and they were getting very concerned about it – they were being criticized.”
“And the last thing they wanted was for this thing to spread to America.”
News Group Newspapers, which publishes The sun, maintained that all requests made to Portley-Hanks were legitimate.
“He was clearly instructed in writing to act legally and signed a legal pledge to do so,” News Group Newspapers said in a statement.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who criticized British media coverage that included headlines like Markle being “(Almost) Straight Outta Compton”, released their own statement. The couple stated that these illegal practices were still taking place.
“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex feel that today is an important time for reflection for the media industry and society in general, as this investigative report shows that the predatory practices of days gone by are still underway, reaping damage irreversible for families and relationships, ”the statement read.
“They are grateful to those who work in the media and defend the values of journalism, which are needed now more than ever.”
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The private investigator admits to illegally spying on Meghan Markle on behalf of the British tabloid first appeared on TheGrio.