Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are 'shocked' by 'hurtful' public reaction to their 'near-catastrophic' car chase amid claims they 'exaggerated' the story, according to reports.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex revealed they were involved in a two hour car chase, alongside Meghan's mother Gloria Ragland, with the paparazzi after leaving the Women of Vision Awards on May 16.
A spokesperson for the couple said there were "multiple near collisions" which also put members of the public in "jeopardy" and described paparazzi as "highly aggressive".
Since releasing their statement, the couple have been accused of exaggerating their version of events as a royal source says they have been 'shocked' by the 'hurtful' commentary.
A source told Us Weekly: “They insist their account of the car chase was absolutely not exaggerated, and for people to say otherwise is so hurtful and out of line."
“As far as staying out of sight and being scared to show their faces, that’s not going to happen,” the source told the outlet. “[This has] just strengthened their resolve to keep standing up for themselves and speaking out when they feel wronged.”
Following their own encounter with photographers, a source told the publication that Harry and Meghan “were terrified throughout the whole ordeal.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s publicist defiantly denied claims that the chase was exaggerated for publicity. Publicist Ashley Hansen told Page Six said: “Respectfully, considering the duke’s family history, one would have to think nothing of the couple or anybody associated with them to believe this was any sort of PR stunt.
She added: “Quite frankly, I think that’s abhorrent.”
CNN reported that royal security detail Chris Sanchez said Harry and Meghan were followed from the event by a slew vehicles. Sanchez said he’d “never seen [or] experienced anything like this,” and that “the public were in jeopardy at several points".
However, a spokesman for the NYPD downplayed the severity of the incident in their statement: “The NYPD assisted the private security team protecting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging.
"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests in regard.”
This comes after the latest reports that Harry and Meghan are reportedly on the rocks as the Duke often takes a solo trip to a hotel near the couple's lavish mansion in the US.
Harry reportedly has a room "set aside" for him at the lavish San Vicente Bungalows in California which he uses to spend alone away from his family. Royal expert Kara Kennedy speculated that the reports highlight the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's relationship is not all as it seems.
She told GB News: "I think this is the beginning of the end. Everybody kind of knew that it was coming, you can't really have such a different power dynamic. Even from the Time Magazine front cover, remember when Harry was kind of stepping behind Meghan, everybody made a joke that he looked like a hairdresser. When you have that kind of dynamic, resentment will build."
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