Meghan Markle, who attended the Broadway musical Gypsy, was accompanied by a “modest” security detail consisting of three SUVs and an unmarked NYPD vehicle.
The 43-year-old Duchess of Sussex’s heightened security measures — widely criticized online as “completely over-the-top” — come as her husband, Prince Harry, traveled to London to continue his legal fight to reinstate royal protection for their family in the UK.
On the evening of Thursday, Meghan Markle appeared in New York with a motorcade of three SUVs and an unmarked police car, according to Page Six.
The outlet reports that Meghan had hired former Secret Service agents as part of her private security team. Two detectives were also spotted inside the unmarked police car, which belonged to the NYPD.
To throw off paparazzi, two of the vehicles in the motorcade were reportedly decoys. The motorcade, mostly empty, made its way through Manhattan’s busy streets and eventually returned the same way — with no dramatic chase or incident.
A paparazzi insider described the Duchess’s security precautions as “absolutely insane and completely excessive.” “Taylor Swift usually rolls with just two cars — one for her, one for her team,” the source noted.
He also pointed out that even top-tier celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, and Rihanna typically travel in a single vehicle — unless they’re with their families — and none of them get police escorts.
To recap, the Royal Family stripped the Sussexes of taxpayer-funded protection back in February 2020, following their decision to step down from official duties and relinquish royal status.
During a court hearing on April 9, Harry once again failed to get the ruling reversed. Speaking to reporters afterward, he said he felt “drained and disheartened,” and that his “worst fears have come true.”
The Prince has emphasized the importance of safeguarding his family — including son Archie, 5, and daughter Lilibet, 3 — in light of his trauma over the death of his mother, Princess Diana, who died in a car crash while being chased by paparazzi.
According to reports, Harry also suspects that removing his security detail in the UK was a form of punishment for his departure from royal life. However, critics accuse the couple of dramatizing the issue to gain publicity.
It’s worth noting that a similar security motorcade situation unfolded back in October 2023 in New York. At the time, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended a World Mental Health Day festival, according to The Mirror.
There, where Prince William would have walked a block a foot, with hundreds of well-wishers residents gathering on the street to welcome him — Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “required” an entire motorcade of cars and even a police escort.
The official reason cited for requesting police protection to travel one block stemmed from an “incident” allegedly occurring during Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s visit to New York in January 2023.
According to their account, their vehicle had been pursued by paparazzi, compelling the driver of the Prince and Duchess to engage in what was described as a ‘near catastrophic’ race through city streets. Reported by CBS News.
