Harry And Meghan In 'Near Catastrophic Two-Hour Car Chase' Involving Paparazzi

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” in New York involving “highly aggressive” paparazzi that lasted over two hours.

- ANDREA BLANCO JOE MIDDLETON TARA COBHAM

Harry and Meghan said they were followed from a charity awards ceremony as they headed to a private residence. Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland was also in the car.

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two [police] officers,” a spokesperson for the royal couple said.

Reports suggest the group sought refuge in two police stations after the event finished at 10pm before finally returning to a friend’s home. The Telegraph report they left one police station in a taxi, to try and throw the paparazzi off, but they were photographed leaving. They then went to another police station before arriving at their final destination at 0030 local time [GMT 1930]. Paparazzi are said to have run a red light, reversed down a one-way street and mounted the pavement in the pursuit.

It was a chilling echo of the 1997 chase through Paris that killed Harry’s mother, Princess Diana.

However, authorities gave a different account of events. The New York Police Department, which assisted the couple’s private security, said the journey had been “challenging” but “there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries or arrests”.