Prince William Called Kate Middleton ‘Babykins’ in Hacked Conversation

Prosecutors said for the first time Thursday that then-girlfriend Middleton's phone was hacked.

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Staff at the now-defunct British tabloid News of the World hacked the phone of Prince William’s now-wife Kate Middleton, prosecutors said for the first time Thursday.

Prosecutors said messages on the Duchess of Cambridge’s phone were found at the home of the newspaper’s royal editor and an affiliated private investigator in 2006, Reuters reports. In one message, Prince William, training at the time to be a military officer, told Middleton, who was then his girlfriend, that he “nearly got shot” with blanks. In another, he addresses her with the pet name “babykins.”

Staff also allegedly tapped into the phone of Prince Harry. In a message left for him that was read in court Thursday, older brother Prince William puts on a high voice pretending to be his sibling’s then-girlfriend Chelsy Davy, Reuters reports.

Seven people are on trial for multiple offenses, including conspiracy to illegally intercept voicemails, charges they all deny. The hacking scandal led to the closure of the News of the World in 2011.

[Reuters]

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