Publisher and photographer accused over Kate Middleton topless photos

(PA)

A magazine publisher and a photographer have been placed under formal investigation in France for allegedly invading the privacy of the Duchess of Cambridge.

The accusations, which are not yet formal charges, concern the topless photos of the Duchess published in the French edition of Closer magazine in September and images of her in a bikini in a regional paper, La Provence.

Investigating magistrates in Nanterre, west of Paris, decided last month to place under investigation Ernesto Mauroi, the president of Mondadori France, publishers of Closer, it emerged yesterday. They have also started an investigation into the actions of an unnamed photographer who took less revealing images of the duchess published in La Provence.

Investigations are continuing to establish whether the same photographer took the topless pictures of the former Kate Middleton while she sunbathed.