Prince Harry was left feeling paranoid of friends after ‘phone hacking’, court documents reveal

New court documents have revealed how Prince Harry was left feeling suspicious of his friends after his phone was allegedly hacked by the News of the World, according to reports. 

In a recently released High Court writ, the Duke of Sussex is claiming he became ‘paranoid’ of those around him after the publication of stories alleged to have come through phone hacking, the reports say.

He is taking legal action against News Group Newspapers, publisher of The Sun and the defunct News of the World. 

Prince Harry, 36, is also suing the publisher of the Daily Mirror, Reach Plc.

The claims, for £200,000 in damages, were filed in September last year and widely reported at the time.

But details have only recently become available, according to the Times – which is owned by News Group Newspapers’ parent company News UK. 

Prince Harry (pictured here volunteering in LA last week) is claiming £200,000 in damages from the publisher of the Sun and the Daily Mirror, over alleged phone hacking, according to reports

He is taking legal action against News Group Newspapers, publisher of The Sun and the defunct News of the World (pictured: The former News of the World offices in Wapping)

According to the Times, Prince Harry claims he was targeted from the age of 12.

He also claims he had voicemails go missing from his phone and says journalists and photographers would often appear at places he was visiting without warning, the paper adds.

As part of the writ, Prince Harry is reportedly claiming he suffered a gross violation of his privacy rights and has accused the papers of an overwhelming intrusion into his day-to-day life.

According to the Times, the duke has instructed the barrister David Sherborne to represent him in the High Court case.

Harry was one target in a phone-hacking scandal that prompted the closure of the News of the World paper in 2011. 

The issue came to light when Clive Goodman, the then News of the World royal editor, and Glenn Mulcaire, a private investigator were convicted of intercepting voicemail messages left for royal aides.

Goodman, who it is claimed tapped into several hundred messages, was jailed for four months, while Mulcaire was jailed for six months.

The issue came to light when Clive Goodman (pictured left), the then News of the World royal editor, and Glenn Mulcaire, a private investigator were convicted of intercepting voicemail messages left for royal aides. Goodman, who it is claimed tapped into several hundred messages, was jailed for four months, while Mulcaire (pictured right) was jailed for six months

Princes William and Harry, and Kate Middleton, were all named in a trial in 2006, which led to the convictions of Goodman and Mulcaire and the resignation of the paper’s editor Andy Coulson.

He said he took responsibility for the scandal, and was later jailed for 18 months.

The News of the World was eventually closed down by Rupert Murdoch in 2011 after it emerged the paper had hacked into the phone of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler. 

Meanwhile, a judge in a civil trial against the Mirror ruled that phone-hacking at the paper was ‘widespread’.  

As of last year, both papers had paid out more than £500million in damages and costs over the scandal. 

News of the lawsuits come as Prince Harry was spotted volunteering for a non-profit foundation providing COVID-19 support for veterans and their families, and at-risk communities in Compton, California.

The Duke of Sussex, 36, joined volunteers to pack and distribute food parcels as part of an event organised by Compton Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Walker Family Events Foundation (WFEF).

Taking to Instagram, WFEF shared a photograph of the Duke of Sussex casually dressed in a pair of blue jeans, a khaki colored polo shirt, cap and protective face mask.

The event took place just a short drive from where Meghan Markle grew up and where her mother Doria lives in the View Park-Windsor Hills area of Los Angeles, approximately 20 minutes away, in a large yellow-colored detached home. It neighbors Crenshaw, an area that has been scarred by gang violence.