Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's new security head was fired by Michael Jackson's family after they discovered drunk-driving and domestic abuse accusations against him. This new security also worked for One Direction. Despite his record, will he be an effective detail for the controversial couple?
The Jacksons reportedly fired Alberto Alvarez after the death of the pop icon because they felt something was not right about him.
Alvarez was one of the first on the scene in June 2009 when the King of Pop was discovered dead at his home, despite the fact that Alvarez remained faithful to Jackson.
In May, he was spotted cycling with the former British royal in Montecito, California, and rumors of his appointment by Harry and Meghan emerged.
If these shady details were to be ignored, the 45-year-old Alvarez is described as well-trained, has 15 years of expertise, and is accustomed to working with celebrities.
But his hire by Prince Harry, whose mother Diana was killed in a car accident involving a drunk driver, may surprise some royals followers.
In March 2010, TMZ reported that the Jackson family fired Alvarez. Alvarez's DUI and domestic abuse offenses came to light in a story published that month by the now-defunct website PopEater, which was acquired by the Huffington Post.
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According to the website, the Jacksons fired the security guard "after discovering he had a criminal past and deciding he should no longer be near their enormous brood of youngsters."
Jackson has employed Alvarez as a bodyguard for more than five years. During Jackson's 2004 child molestation trial in Santa Maria, California, and again in Beverly Hills in May 2009, days before Jackson's death, he was photographed by the singer's side.
After Jackson's death, neighbors reported that the singer's security head had kept his position a secret.
Alvarez was a major witness in the inquiry into Jackson's death, informing the LAPD that Jackson's physician Conrad Murray stopped performing CPR on him in order to conceal vials of Propofol.
However, there was dispute about Alvarez's testimony to police, as the bodyguard of the former pop king waited two months before bringing the allegations against Murray.
A family member told the website when Alvarez began fabricating stories, the estate decided to investigate him. In addition to a DUI, he also had a domestic violence incident on his record. A domestic complaint had been made against Alvarez, and he had also been arrested for DUI.
He was convicted of DUI with a blood alcohol level above 0.08 percent and driving without a license in Pomona in October 2009, according to Los Angeles court records acquired by DailyMail.com.
He was placed on three years of probation, fined $390, and was required to satisfactorily complete a three-month approved first-offender alcohol and other drug education and counseling program, according to court documents.
In a prior case from 2000, he was charged with felony domestic violence for "bodily injury to a spouse or intimate partner" and disturbing the peace. He was also sentenced to three years of probation.
Alvarez did not contest the second accusation of'maliciously and intentionally disturbing another person with loud and outrageous noise'
As part of his plea agreement, the judge dismissed the domestic violence allegation "in the interest of justice."
Given how careful Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are about the people they associate with, it's a wonder why Alvarez was hired. So far however, he seems to be doing his job well.
According to his LinkedIn, Alvarez is currently employed as a 'Executive Protection Agent' for TorchStone Global.
Aside from the photographs of him riding his bike with Prince Harry and a friend near the royal's $15 million Montecito house, he has also been spotted alongside his wife, Meghan Markle, at the Uvalde, Texas mass shooting memorial.
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