Meghan Markle, Prince Harry called local criminals neighbors in the crowded California city
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have reportedly been called local criminals by neighbors of the popular California town the couple fled to after stepping down from their royal roles.
A Montecito resident, who has never met the couple but spoke to Vanity Fair, called the two princes and “stars.”
Neighbors in the quiet Santa Barbara neighborhood say many of the annoyances come from Markle and Prince Harry, including rising housing prices, busy streets and more.
The neighborhood has seen a lot of visitor traffic since Markle and Harry arrived in 2020, anonymous residents told the outlet. Vanity Fair also reported that several people they spoke to noted that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have become local criminals.
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been called local criminals in their hometown of Montecito, according to Vanity Fair. (Fox News Digital)
“You know, something about [Meghan and Harry] it is very good that they did not come here to live outside our community. They came here to be part of our community.”
Markle’s latest venture, American Riviera Orchard, is also in Montecito, Vanity Fair reports. According to the outlet, a book published by the Southern Pacific Company railroad in 1898 states, “Montecito is known as the American Riviera.” However, that honor reportedly now belongs to Santa Barbara.
“It’s that kind of hucksterism,” a resident told Vanity Fair. “Finding all the ways to make money from something.
“I still think they have the right, the most disrespectful people in the world,” added the resident. “They left England to escape the scrutiny of the media, and all they’re doing is trying to get into the press in the United States.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for comment.
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle aren’t the only celebrities living in Montecito. (Chris Jackson)
Meanwhile, the couple’s arrival was praised by their celebrity neighbor, Sharon Stone.
“You know, the biggest thing about them is that they didn’t come here to live outside of our community. They came here to be a part of our community,” he told Access Hollywood in 2020.
“My friend said that he was sitting in his car, they rode a bicycle across the street and waved at him while he was sitting at a red light,” he recalled. “They are part of our community. They have become giving, caring and active people in our community.. They didn’t come to be like, ‘Would you like to kiss my butt?’
Montecito has been home to several celebrities, including Natalie Portman, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Adam Levine, Leonardo DiCaprio, Michael Keaton and Oprah.
The entrance to the area where Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle live in Montecito. (Getty Images)
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Despite moving to the United States five years ago after leaving his senior position in royal life, Prince Harry reportedly has no public life outside of his nuclear family.
“[Meghan] he was telling the truth that Harry hadn’t made many friends,” a source, who has been in contact with Markle professionally, told Vanity Fair.
Markle and Prince Harry have committed to work and landed a blockbuster Netflix contract months after establishing Montecito as their home in 2020. First they took out their documents, “Harry and Meghan,” in 2022. The program achieved the largest one-day audience of any Netflix series since it began monitoring in October 2022. A year later, they followed the documentary “Heart of Invictus” in 2023 and produced “Polo” in 2024.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving to California in 2020. (Chris Jackson/Getty Images for the Invictus Games Foundation)
However, multiple sources described Markle and Prince Harry as having “excellent ideas” for plans that never materialized.
“I think Harry doesn’t know what he wants because he grew up in a fishbowl, so he doesn’t know what real life is,” an insider, who works on media projects with the couple, told Vanity Fair. “I think maybe he wants to be alone and be able to kiss the kids every once in a while but not worry about money. I don’t think he wants to be famous the way Meghan wants to be.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are interviewing Oprah Winfrey in 2021 at a friend of Winfrey’s home in Santa Barbara County, California. (Harpo Productions)
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Fox News Digital’s Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
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