The eldest son of the Crown Princess of Norway has been charged with four counts of rape. Marius Borg Høiby, 28, was charged with 32 offences, incl
The eldest son of the Crown Princess of Norway has been charged with four counts of rape.
Marius Borg Høiby, 28, was charged with 32 offences, including domestic abuse of a former partner, assault, breaches of the peace and violation of restraining orders against another former partner, the state prosecutor of Norway said on Monday.
He has also been charged with filming the genitals of women without their knowledge or consent, prosecutors said. He faces up to 10 years in prison over the combined offences.
Mr Borg Høiby is the stepson of Prince Haakon, the Crown Prince of Norway, but withdrew from public life and royal duties at the age of 20.
His mother, Mette-Marit, the Crown Princess, was a single parent when she met and married Prince Haakon in 2001.
In June, prosecutors charged Mr Borg Høiby with two counts of rape, four cases of sexual assault and two cases of bodily harm. It is not clear if Monday’s announcement was an updated tally of those charges or related to an entirely separate set of alleged offences.
According to Aftenposten, a Norwegian newspaper, Sturla Henriksbø, the state prosecutor, said: “This case is very serious. Rape and violence in close relationships can leave lasting traces and destroy lives.”
Mr Henriksbø added that equality before the law meant that Mr Borg Høiby should not receive any lenience or special treatment as a result of his royal connections.
Police have investigated 18 alleged victims and reviewed thousands of messages and media files as part of their investigation into the Norwegian royal, Mr Henriksbø said.
Mr Borg Høiby has been arrested several times in recent months over cases involving multiple women, including at least two former girlfriends, and one man.
In the assault case involving a former girlfriend, the victim was discharged from the hospital the day after the alleged attack with a concussion. Local media have also reported that a knife was stuck into one of the walls of the victim’s bedroom.
Mr Borg Høiby’s lawyers declined to comment on Monday’s announcement of new charges.
In June, a lawyer representing the Norwegian royal told the Associated Press that their client was “absolutely taking the accusations very seriously, but doesn’t acknowledge any wrongdoing in most of the cases – especially the cases regarding sexual abuse and violence”.
Mr Borg Høiby admitted to assault and vandalism following an arrest in August.
He said in a statement that he acted “under the influence of alcohol and cocaine after an argument”, having suffered from “mental troubles” and “substance abuse”.
The scandal surrounding Mr Borg Høiby poses a significant problem for the Norwegian royal family and is the most high-profile sexual offence case in the country’s modern history.
According to Nettavisen, another Norwegian newspaper, Mr Borg Høiby was recently stripped of his diplomatic passport, a special privilege afforded to certain members of the royal family. The fact that Mr Borg Høiby was initially issued with a diplomatic passport has, in itself, caused controversy because he is not a working royal.
The spokesman for the foreign ministry confirmed the lack of a passport, but did not explicitly link its confiscation to the criminal charges.
Source: The Telegraph
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