Marius Borg Høiby, the 29-year-old son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit, was slapped with a four-year prison term on Monday morning after being found guilty of two rapes, domestic violence and several other crimes. His sentence was just under half of what prosecutors had sought but more than double that which his defense attorneys thought he deserved, and he appealed within hours.
Høiby wasn’t present in the Oslo courtroom when Judge Jon Sverdrup Efjestad read off the court’s unanimous 128-page decision following Høiby’s trial last winter. Høiby was acquitted of two other rapes he’d been accused of committing while his alleged victims were sleeping, because of “considerable uncertainty” over the circumstances involved.
Høiby, who was living on the royal estate at Skaugum when many of the crimes in his 40-count indictment occurred, has been in police custody since just before his seven-week trial began in early February. He’ll get credit for time served then and before that, but Høiby views a four-year sentence as unreasonable.
“He clearly doesn’t think the plaintiffs (mostly former girlfriends) were subjected to any regime of violence,” Høiby’s defense attorney Petar Sekulic told state broadcaster NRK on Monday afternoon. “Regarding the two rape cases, he is also very clear that he is not guilty.”
The court disagreed but Høiby, who had been allowed to merely follow proceedings on Monday via video link because of alleged health issues, also planned to apply for immediate release. His mother is seriously ill and waiting for a lung transplant, prompting his defense attorney to claim that “the most important thing for him now is to be with his mother and family.”
Police, however, have earlier succeeded at keeping Høiby in custody, for fear he’d once again violate restraining orders against some of the women he’s accused of abusing. Høiby has also once again been ordered not to contact one of his former girlfriends over the next two years.
In addition to issuing the four-year prison term, the Oslo County Court also ordered Høiby to pay a total of NOK 640,000 (USD 67,000) in compensation to four young women. A woman assaulted at the Skaugum estate was granted a toal of NOK 230,000, another was granted NOK 200,000 and two former girlfriends were awarded NOK 100,000 and NOK 110,000 respectively after he’d abused them and, in one case, vandalized her home in Oslo.
The latter case launched the entire legal drama around Høiby, after police were called to her home late at night on August 4, 2024. There they found her apartment in Oslo’s Frogner district in shambles, a knife that had apparently been hurled into a wall and the young woman injured. Høiby was already on police radar but it was only then that his crimes went fully public.
That in turn set off a scandal after years of earlier controversy around Høiby. Mounting criminal charges against Høiby sent the entire royal family into crisis mode, amidst many other troubles and illness plaguing the King Harald and Queen Sonja. Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s earlier involvement with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has left some Norwegians wondering whether she can ever be their queen.
Meanwhile, Høiby continues to fend off his new convictions for also receiving and transporting 3.5 kilos of marijuana, six serious traffic violations, refusing to cooperate with police on at least one occasion and even “showing the finger” to police on another occasion.
Prosecutors had sought a prison term of seven years and seven months in prison, while his defense attorneys had asked for around 18 months. They successfully claimed that there was no hard evidence for either the rapes or other violence of which Høiby was accused.
Many were viewing the four-year sentence handed down on Monday as a compromise of sorts between the prosecution and defense. It’s unclear when his appeal will be heard and where he’ll be in the meantime. Høiby is currently being held at the state prison at Ila in Bærum, just west of Oslo. His defense attorneys said on Monday they will continue to work for his release, but Høiby’s request to be set free pending appeal was quickly rejected by the Oslo County Court.
NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund
