An alleged stalker has been arrested lurking outside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Montecito mansion during the middle of the night, according to reports.
It is understood that a member of the security team at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s $14million (£112million) California home placed the man under citizen’s arrest, before alerting the local police.
A spokesperson for the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office told TMZ that they had received a phone call on Monday morning at around 2 a.m. from security staffers.
The tabloid said 29-year-old Kevin Garcia Valdovinos was placed under citizen’s arrest at the entrance to the couple’s property, citing the Santa Barbara cops.
Once police officers arrived, the man was taken into custody and booked for misdemeanor stalking, before later being released on $2,500 bail.
The tabloid said 29-year-old Kevin Garcia Valdovinos was placed under citizen’s arrest at the entrance to the couple’s property, citing the Santa Barbara cops. Pictured: Harry and Meghan are seen attending the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards in NYC last night
An alleged stalker has been arrested lurking outside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ‘s Montecito mansion (pictured) during the middle of the night, according to reports
The law under which Valdovinos was arrested indicated this was not the first time he has committed a similar offense.
TMZ reported that he never made it on to the property, and that it was something he told security that prompted them to place him under citizen’s arrest.
It was not clear if Harry and Meghan – or their two children Archie, 4 or Lilibet, 1 – were come at the time of the arrest.
The couple were in New York City last night attending the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards, where Meghan was presented with the 2023 award ‘for her global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls.’
The couple and their then-one-year-old son Archie moved into the exclusive Montecito neighborhood in 2020.
They purchased the lavish 18,000-square-foot home, which sits on 5.4 acres of land, for $14.5 million (£11m).
It was revealed a year later by the PA news agency, in July 2021, that police had been called to the mansion nine times in as many months.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office even responded twice over Christmas to pick up a trespasser who had travelled to the Sussexes’ home from Ohio.
The property’s alarm system had also been triggered five times in that time.
The data, obtained under Freedom of Information laws, was released after the couple shared their security fears in their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Meghan Markle put on a stunning display in strapless gold dress as she arrived at a glittering New York gala – where she accepted a ‘Women of Vision’ award from her pal Gloria Steinem. It is understood that a ‘stalker’ was arrested at her home in California a day earlier
Nickolas Brooks was the man who drove all the way from Ohio. He was caught trespassing on Christmas Eve 2020. He returned again two days later, on December 26 2020, and was arrested by police for trespassing.
Brooks was first let off with a warning but he showed up at the house again on Boxing Day at 2.54pm and was subsequently arrested and charged with one count of misdemeanor trespassing.
Brooks subsequently said he may have been ‘high’ when he trespassed the house. It was later revealed that he had a previous conviction for taking part in an attack which left a man with a broken bone in his face.
He said: ‘I don’t know why I went to their place, that’s kind of where I ended up. I drove across the country – I know it’s crazy.
‘I’ve been told to stay away and that I’m never allowed back there but I don’t have to appear in court. I was in jail for a night and they told me to stay away in future.’
News of Brooks’ breaches came just a week after Harry had opened up about being worried for his family’s safety. The Prince told of his fears during the couple’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey on March 7, 2021.
Harry revealed how Buckingham Palace revoked their security detail when they stepped down as senior royals and moved to North America.
He said that he and Meghan inked their lucrative deals with Netflix and Spotify because they needed money to cover their own security after being ‘cut off financially’ by the Palace after their departure from the UK.
‘I’ve got what my mum left me, and without that, we would not have been able to do this,’ he told Oprah at the time.
Nickolas Brooks (pictured) was the man who drove all the way from Ohio. He was caught trespassing on Christmas Eve 2020. He returned again two days later, on December 26 2020, and was arrested by police for trespassing
‘During COVID, the suggestion by a friend was, ‘What about streamers?” Harry said, while Meghan added: ‘We genuinely hadn’t thought about it before.’
‘We hadn’t thought about it,’ Harry continued. ‘So, there were all sorts of different options. And look, from my perspective, all I needed was enough money to be able to pay for security to keep my family safe.’
The deals with Netflix and Spotify were said to be worth $100million and $25million, respectively, while Harry has since published a memoir titled ‘Spare’, which – according to Guinness World Records – became ‘the fastest selling non-fiction book of all time’ on the date of its release.
It is widely reported that Harry recieved $20 million for the book deal.
