Prince Harry had previously claimed that his personal relationships were greatly affected by the articles published in the press, which detailed private information that only those close to him knew about.
The Duke of Sussex, who appeared at the Royal Court of Justice last month to give evidence against the Daily Mail publisher, reiterated his position and stressed that the leak did not come from his close circle.
As the legal proceedings continued on Monday, the former Mail Sunday Editor Peter Wright pointed to the source of Caroline Graham’s article which revealed Harry had been “infatuated” with his then girlfriend Chelsy Davy.
The former editor told the court that the identity of Harry’s ex-girlfriend “was given by staff” at an Argentine polo ranch and was not acquired illegally.
“It is my understanding that Caroline was given the name Chelsy Davy by the ranch staff, with whom she or those who worked with her had a friendly relationship,” he said.
He also added that he had no recollection of anyone contacting British Airways for details and denied any information had been “censored”.
Last month, Harry made an emotional statement that newspapers attributed to sources and friends that made him “paranoid beyond belief” and made him believe the newspapers wanted him to “drive me to drugs and drink to sell more of their newspapers.”
He was shocked by the “extraordinary level of detail” mentioned in the story and made it feel like it was “part of an endless pursuit, a campaign, an obsession to monitor every aspect of my life”.
