Harry and Meghan warned to be on their guard after burglars strike

27 January 2024 , 22:01

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were seen on the red carpet at the premiere of 'Bob Marley: One Love' (Image: MEGA)

Prince Harry and wife Meghan have been warned to be on their guard following a burglary spree in their area.

Police in the US suspect the break-ins are by an organised gang, which has targeted safes. And the latest raid, on Wednesday, was five minutes’ drive from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s £12million mansion in Montecito, California.

The couple were in Jamaica at the time for the film premiere of Bob Marley: One Love. The Montecito Association issued a neighbourhood-wide alert, which gave tips on home security – including a message from Santa Barbara County Sheriff officer Rachel Zick.

It said: “In the past week, deputies have taken several burglary reports with notable similarities in the resident layouts, times of occurrence and items taken. In these burglaries, criminals target unoccupied residences that back up to open spaces. Investigators have noted most of these crimes occur between 6pm and 10pm. The suspect(s) are targeting safes.”

The Sussexes live in Montecito, an affluent town in Santa Barbara (AFP via Getty Images)

A team of guards protect the Sussexes, including Christopher Sanchez, who previously protected Barack Obama, and Christopher Keenan, who protected Hillary Clinton.

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In July 2022, it was reported the mansion Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, share with kids Archie, four, and Lilibet, two, had been the subject of six security alerts in 14 months.

Two of them were intruder scares, which caused police to race to their home. Both calls were logged as “trespasser”, “property crimes” and “suspicious circumstances”. In separate alerts, on Christmas Eve 2020 a man allegedly trespassed at the home and was arrested when he returned on Boxing Day.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were slammed by some for their "insensitive" trip after they opted to watch the Bob Marley: One Love, instead of flying to the UK to visit the Royal Family when both Princess Kate and King Charles were hospitalised. However, an insider close to the pair said the couple had been personally invited to attend the premiere of the new flick by Paramount boss Brian Robbins.

Patrick Hill