Paparazzi involved in an alleged car chase involving Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle in New York City on Tuesday evening have blamed the incident on the couple’s “reckless” driver.

Backgrid USA Inc assigned four photographers to the Ms. Foundation gala on Tuesday night, where the Duchess of Sussex received a “Women of Vision” award.

The company said: “One of the four SUVs from Prince Harry’s security escort was driving in a manner that could be perceived as reckless.

“The vehicle was seen blocking off streets, and in one video, it is shown being pulled over by the police.”

Three photographers hired by the agency followed the couple in cars after they left the gala, while one pedalled after them on his bicycle.

“According to the photographers present, there were no near-collisions or near-crashes,” the agency continued. The photographers have reported feeling that the couple was not in immediate danger at any point.”

The company said it is conducting a “thorough investigation into the matter.”

The statement continued: “At Backgrid USA Inc., we do not condone any form of harassment or illegal activity. We are taking Prince Harry’s allegations seriously.”

A spokesperson for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle said on Wednesday: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi.”

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD (New York Police Department) officers,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Here is Alisha Rahaman Sarkar with a timeline of the events:

The Duke of Sussex’s former bodyguard has said his current security team lack experience, following a “near catastrophic car chase” in New York.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were followed by paparazzi after attending an awards ceremony with the duchess’s mother, Doria Ragland, on Tuesday, the couple’s spokesman said.

There are claims they were subjected to a “relentless pursuit” involving six blacked-out vehicles driving recklessly and endangering the convoy and everyone around them.

Ken Wharfe, who used to take Harry to school when he was three years old, said his current security were “unaware of what the dilemmas seem to be”.

The former bodyguard told the PA news agency: “There seems to be a lack of chemistry between them and Harry and Meghan.

“The departure from the hotel was chaotic before they began their whacky drive through New York.

“Harry needs to be part of the planning. He knows the dangers better than anyone.

“You (need) a relationship with the people you are protecting. Until that happens things like this will happen again.”

It is said those involved in the incident were confronted by uniformed police several times but continued the pursuit.

It is also said there is security footage and other evidence to support the allegations.

Mr Wharfe added: “There seemed to be no planning happening on that night.

On social media, the news of the incident has been met with horror, with many suggesting the paparazzi’s alleged pursuit of Harry, Meghan and the duchess’s mother resembled the circumstances surrounding Diana’s tragic death.

Chelsea Ritschel reports:

In the five-episode docuseries The Me You Can’t See, which was released on Apple TV+ in May 2021, Prince Harry compared his mother being “chased to her death while she was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t white” to his relationship with Meghan Markle.

While speaking to Oprah Winfrey, the duke explained that one of the main reasons he and Meghan decided to leave the UK was the constant harassment by the media, which frequently published stories about the duchess, who is half Black, with racially charged undertones.

“Do I have any regrets? Yeah, my biggest regret is not making more of a stance earlier on in my relationship with my wife and calling out the racism when I did,” he said.

Harry then compared his relationship with Meghan to that of his mother’s with Dodi Al Fayed, revealing that he felt “history was repeating itself” as his mother was also targeted by the paparazzi for dating someone that “wasn’t white”.

“History was repeating itself. My mother was chased to her death while she was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t white. And now look at what’s happened. You wanna talk about history repeating itself, they’re not gonna stop until she dies,” he said.

“It’s incredibly triggering to potentially lose another woman in my life,” Harry continued. “The list is growing. And it all comes back to the same people, the same business model, the same industry. Because my father used to say to me when I was younger, he used to say to both William and I: ‘Well it was like that for me so it’s gonna be like that for you.’”

The duke – who shares four-year-old son Prince Archie and one-year-old daughter Lilibet Diana with Meghan – went on to say how his father’s mindset “doesn’t make sense” to him.

“Just because you suffered, that doesn’t mean that your kids have to suffer,” Harry said. “In fact quite the opposite, if you’ve suffered, do whatever you can to make sure that whatever experiences, negative experiences you had, that you can make it right for your kids.”

He said: “Eventually when I made that decision for my family, I was still told you can’t do this. And it’s like: ‘Well how bad does it have to get until I am allowed to do this?’

“She was going to end her life. It shouldn’t have to get to that.”

During an ITV interview with Tom Bradby last January, Prince Harry narrated an excerpt from his book that recounted the night his father, King Charles III, told him his mother had died. “You know, my father coming in, in his dressing gown and sharing that news with me, only now as part of writing the book, that I really think about how many hours he’d been awake,” the duke said, adding he had “compassion” for Charles having to “break this to my two sons”.

Harry added that was part of the reason “why we are here now”.

“I never want to be in that position. I don’t want history to repeat itself. I do not want to be a single dad. And I certainly don’t want my children to have a life without a mother or a father.”

Prince Harry’s fears of “history repeating itself” have resurfaced after the Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan Markle were involved in a “near catastrophic” car chase in New York City.

Prince Harry first compared the media’s treatment of his mother to his wife Meghan during the couple’s bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021. “My biggest fear was history repeating itself,” he said during the interview.

“I’m just really relieved and happy to be sitting here talking to you with my wife by my side because I can’t begin to imagine what it must have been like for her [Diana] going through this process by herself all those years ago.”

During an ITV interview with Tom Bradby last January, Prince Harry said: “I do not want to be a single dad. And I certainly don’t want my children to have a life without a mother or a father.”

In the five-episode docuseries The Me You Can’t See, which was released on Apple TV+ in May 2021, Prince Harry compared his mother being “chased to her death while she was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t white” to his relationship with Meghan Markle.

“It’s incredibly triggering to potentially lose another woman in my life,” Prince Harry said. “The list is growing. And it all comes back to the same people, the same business model, the same industry. Because my father used to say to me when I was younger, he used to say to both William and I: ‘Well it was like that for me so it’s gonna be like that for you.’”

Meredith Clark reports:

Here is the timeline of the events.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports: