All signs point to Thomas Markle Sr being a “possible sex offender of the grossest kind” although a full forensic investigation will give a “definitive picture”, the Philippine interior minister has told the Guardian.

Authorities in the south-east Asian country are analysing digital images allegedly belonging to the estranged father of the Duchess of Sussex that were said to have been found at his former home in Cebu. Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr, reported to authorities last week that he had apparently discovered a stash of child sexual abuse images.

“In these cases where family disputes are mixed up, we have to consider all the angles,” said Jonvic Remulla, the interior minister. “Right now all signs point to a possible sex offender of the grossest kind. We want to be sure before we release the findings. The forensics data will be complete in a week.”

Remulla said a statement would be released once the data had been analysed, without giving a specific date. “Please give us a week to determine the contents and to come up with a definitive picture,” he said. “We will release a statement then.”Markle Sr has denied possessing child sexual abuse images, telling the Daily Mail the accusations were “sick lies”.

Philippine police are also investigating a laptop found at the home in Cebu where Markle Sr had been living until he returned to the US earlier this year.

In a statement given to Agence France-Presse, Remulla said the Philippine national police inspected Markle’s former home and found a “trove of child pornography materials as well as a laptop”.

“The PNP will coordinate with their counterparts to locate and take appropriate legal actions against Mr Markle if found that there is sufficient evidence to charge him,” he said.

Markle told the Mail the computers had not been in his possession since he left Mexico with his son in 2025 and moved to the Philippines “for a fresh start”.

He said: “I’m shocked, I’m hurt and I’m very upset that my son is making these accusations against me. I could never do what I’m being accused of. It’s the worst thing anyone could accuse me of.

“This is bullshit. It’s just a bunch of lies. It’s sick. I have no idea why Tom is trying to destroy me with these lies.”Meghan has said she is “deeply distressed” over the allegations, which were first reported in the Sun. She said she had broken off contact with her father to protect her children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five. He has never met them.

On Saturday, the Metropolitan police confirmed they gave a letter to Meghan in 2019 concerning “alleged offending” involving her father, but said they did not pass it on to other law enforcement agencies. Scotland Yard is considering whether to refer itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to review its actions.

In a statement, a Met spokesperson said: “Following a thorough review of Met police systems and records, we have confirmed that in January 2019 we received a letter containing a number of claims about alleged offending outside the United Kingdom. It was sent to the MPS [Metropolitan Police Service] Protection Command to raise concerns in relation to the security of the Duchess of Sussex.

“The letter was reviewed and a decision was made that it should be passed to the office of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for their awareness. The details of the allegations in the letter were not shared with other law enforcement agencies.

“The MPS is reviewing the handling of this matter in 2019 and considering whether a referral to the IOPC is necessary to review our approach.”In a statement on Friday issued through her spokesperson, the duchess said: “I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed.

“In 2018, a letter was sent to the Metropolitan police and Royalty and Specialist Protection. That letter was subsequently shared with me. It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these were being investigated.

“I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications’ distortion over the years, any distance from my father, and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children, was for one reason: to protect them. I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families.

“Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children.”She later said she had misremembered the year in which the Met had contacted her, and confirmed it had been 2019, not 2018 as she said on Friday.

A spokesperson for the duchess said: “In recalling events from more than seven years ago, without the benefit of a diary entry or contemporaneous record, it is understandable that she may have been mistaken by a few months.

“If the MPS holds a time-stamped record confirming that the letter was reviewed in 2019, that should be treated as the accurate reference point for when it was received and shared with the duchess.”Sources said that although Meghan was made aware of the allegations in 2019, she had been unable to speak publicly to avoid jeopardising any future investigation and because speaking out could have resulted in legal action against her.

The Sun reported that Markle Jr told detectives in the Philippines he had discovered “hundreds, if not thousands” of child sexual abuse images on computers and mobile phones stored in four large boxes at the home in Cebu. Markle Jr, 60, said he had also contacted the FBI in the US, the Sun reported.