Samantha Markle claims she's the victim of cyberbullying: 'I was being stalked and harassed'
Meghan Markle’s estranged half-sister Samantha is speaking out about being a victim of cyberbullying since 2018 and how she has been afraid for her life as a result.
The 54-year-old has been outspoken about her frustration towards the Duchess of Sussex, who did not invite her half-sibling to her wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018. Now, as a result of voicing her concerns about the strained relationship among the family members, Samantha — who has the same father, Thomas Markle, as the duchess — says that she’s been bullied, stalked and harassed online.
In an interview with local Florida station WFLA, Samantha revealed that she’s moved twice since being thrust into the public eye at the time of Meghan’s nuptials — first from Florida to Virginia, and then back to the Sunshine State. She told the outlet that she felt forced to relocate because of people cyberbullying her.
“They had hacked our devices and their apps had camera access, and they were mentioning conversations that we were having in our living room about money or other things,” she said of her and her boyfriend’s time living in Virginia. “So they were acquiescing to not only stalking but hacking.”
Now, the two reside in a town in Polk County, Fla. that Samantha wouldn’t disclose. In July, six months after moving there, she filed a criminal complaint with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office for “online harassment, stalking, hacking.” According to information provided to Yahoo Lifestyle from the office’s Public Information Officer, “the location of the reported crime is on the internet and via social media,” and all took place between 2018 and 2019. The PIO declined to comment on the investigation as a result of the victim’s right to keep that information confidential.
Samantha said that she filed the report because she and her boyfriend were still being stalked.
“I was being stalked and harassed,” she said. “They were taunting me with my address and my location, letting me know that they were out there sharing it. They were also sharing screenshot admissions of having my Social Security number.”
When asked if she is afraid for her life, Samantha responded, “Yes, I have been.”
Still, she acknowledged that Meghan and Harry haven’t had an easy time with the press or online trolls either.
“People that disagree with [Meghan] have bullied her to threatening extremes, they’ve bullied Kate and William, they’ve bullied me. But the difference is they have the money and social, or the financial, resources to protect themselves against that,” Samantha said. “A normal person like me and my dad and our family, we don’t. We just got caught in the middle of it. But nonetheless, we have the right to speak our feelings.”
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