Prince Harry has fallen out with the boss of his beloved charity Sentebale partly due to her high spending on business consultants, insiders have claimed.
The Duke of Sussex, his co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, and the charity's trustees have all resigned from their roles amid financial worries and disagreements.
Dr Sophie Chandauka, 47, who became chairwoman in July 2023, has spent more than £427,000 on consultant fees, according to The Times.
Over the past week, Harry and Chandauka have been engaged in a war of words, with both being involved in a bitter PR operation as they seek to blame each other for the scandal currently engulfing the charity.
Prince Harry has fallen out with the boss of his beloved charity Sentebale partly due to her high spending on business consultants, insiders have claimed
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Sentebale's latest accounts show it only earned a total income of £3.41million, leaving some in the organisation concerned about the high consultant spending, according to the Mail.
The consultants were employed to pursue a strategy to get donations from wealthy Americans, but sources close to former trustees told the BBC they had not delivered results.
The highest bill was £185,000 paid to Lebec, a "woman-led strategy firm" founded by Alix Lebec.
A Sentebale spokeswoman told Mail the charity's board "approved the contract with Lebec".
Dr Sophie Chandauka accused Harry of 'harassment and bullying at scale'PAThe charity claimed the 12-month deal had "successfully delivered against every single deliverable".
By October 2024, a team of six consultants had reportedly set up 65 key relationships with potential donors.
Sources close to departed patrons disputed this, telling The Times: "It's important to note that this decision was made unilaterally, without board approval."
The various claims are currently being examined by the Charity Commission, which has begun a "regulatory compliance case".
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Both Harry and Chandauka have welcomed the investigation.
The Duke said the crisis had left him "heartbroken" in his first public statement since the scandal broke.
Chandauka claims she had to shut down her social media accounts amid allegations of online bullying by racist trolls.
The Oxford-educated Zimbabwean lawyer portrayed herself as a whistle-blower, highlighting "poor governance" and "abuse of power".
Prince Harry set up Sentebale with Prince Seeiso in 2006GettyShe described the "toxicity of its lead patron's brand" as Sentebale's number one risk.
Royal sources close to Harry called accusations that he personally harassed her a "deflection".
They claimed the trustees' resignation was a "direct result of the chair's mismanagement".
