Duke and Duchess of Sussex involved in 'near catastrophic car chase' in New York

Prince Harry, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and her mother Doria Ragland were allegedly involved in a "near catastrophic car chase" with paparazzi photographers in New York on Tuesday night.

A spokesperson for the British royal told Reuters on Wednesday stated that the incident occurred after the couple attended a gala event in New York City.

"Last night, 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," the spokesperson said.

"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."

According to the outlet, pictures on social media showed Harry, Meghan and Doria in a taxi.

They attended the Ms. Foundation for Women's 50th anniversary event at the Ziegfeld Ballroom on Tuesday night as Meghan was honoured with the Women of Vision Award in recognition of "her global advocacy to empower and advocate on behalf of women and girls".

Harry, 38, has been openly scathing about the paparazzi intrusion in his life and has publicly blamed them for the death of his mother, Princess Diana, in 1997. She was killed in a high-speed car chase in Paris while being followed by photographers.

Harry and Meghan stepped down as senior members of the royal family in 2020 and moved to California partly due to the intense media attention they faced. He has also been pursuing legal claims against several U.K. media publishers relating to historic allegations of phone hacking.