Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Security Comes Under Scrutiny

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's security in the United States has been placed under scrutiny as the duke fights to get his British police team reinstated.

The couple have been photographed by paparazzi going about their private lives multiple times in recent months and now a man has been arrested outside their Montecito home under stalking laws.

It comes after Dai Davies, a former head of royal protection for the Metropolitan Police, said he believes the couple is more at risk in America than in Britain due to the prevalence of gun culture.

Separately, social media footage also showed the size of the couple's private security operation as they arrived for an awards gala in New York where Meghan was honored by the Ms. Foundation.

Man Arrested at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's House

Kevin Garcia Valdovinos, 29, was arrested at Prince Harry and Meghan's $14.7 million dollar mansion in Montecito, California at around 2 a.m. on Monday, May 15, TMZ reported.

The couple's security team performed a citizen's arrest before Valdovinos was booked by police for misdemeanor stalking and later released on $2,500 bail, according to the site.

It is not clear why the suspect was at Harry and Meghan's home, but anything that offers cause for a call to the police is likely to be unwelcome for the security-conscious duke and duchess.

Meghan Markle Wears Gold Johanna Ortiz Dress to Ziegfeld Ballroom

The arrest was made a day before the couple appeared with Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland at the Women of Vision Awards gala put on by the Ms. Foundation in New York City.

Meghan glowed in a gold Johanna Ortiz dress as she arrived at Ziegfeld Ballroom to receive an award in honor of "her global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls."

Professional photos of Harry and Meghan attending the event could have been mistaken for paparazzi images. The couple arrived at the gala in a rental car and were bombarded by photographers at the theater. Images from the night showed their security team clearing a path as they departed the gala.

By contrast, working royals arrive at official engagements in a sterile environment where accredited media are organized into pens known as fixed points, and members of the public are also kept a safe distance away, often behind crowd control barriers.

Police protection officers on the ground can ensure the safe arrival and departure through the front entrance of venues, stopping traffic in the area if the need arises.

One reporter, a camera crew and a photographer will then accompany the royals during their visit managed by a press officer, creating a balance between good images, video footage and content coupled with a calm environment.

Even when a stranger did accidentally walk into Prince William and Kate Middleton's photo call outside the Dog & Duck pub in London, days before King Charles III's coronation, the streets were so well-controlled that it did not so much as disrupt the couple's conversation.

There was also some discussion on social media about Harry and Meghan's private security detail at the gala, which appeared to be personally holding back photographers in close proximity to the couple.

Harry and Meghan's Security in America Compared to Britain

It all comes against the backdrop of Prince Harry's two judicial review lawsuits against the U.K. Home Office over the removal of his police protection, one of which had a hearing on Tuesday at the High Court in London.

When Harry announced the first lawsuit in January 2022, a legal representative said his security situation in Britain was so serious that it was not safe for his family to return without police officers to protect them.

A statement given to Newsweek read: "Prince Harry inherited a security risk at birth, for life. He remains sixth in line to the throne, served two tours of combat duty in Afghanistan, and in recent years his family has been subjected to well-documented neo-Nazi and extremist threats.

"While his role within the Institution has changed, his profile as a member of the Royal Family has not. Nor has the threat to him and his family.

"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex personally fund a private security team for their family, yet that security cannot replicate the necessary police protection needed whilst in the UK. In the absence of such protection, Prince Harry and his family are unable to return to his home."

Dai Davies, a former head of royalty protection for Britain's Metropolitan Police Service, told GB News on Tuesday: "I work with the L.A. authorities, the police, and the FBI. Trust me it is 100 times more dangerous even than in London. So [Harry's] chosen a place to live where he does arguably require it...the gun crime there is horrendous, and yet he's chosen to live there."

Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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