Marius Borg Hoiby, the 28-year-old son of Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit, has been formally charged with 23 criminal offences, including multiple counts of rape, sexual assault, and bodily harm, the Oslo police said on Friday. The investigation continued for nearly a year.
Hoiby, the son of the crown princess from a previous relationship and stepson of Crown Prince Haakon, has been under police scrutiny since August 2024, when he was arrested on preliminary charges related to the alleged assault of his girlfriend. As the investigation progressed, a slew of additional accusations emerged.
Police attorney Andreas Kruszewski confirmed during a press conference that Hoiby has been charged with one count of rape involving intercourse and two counts of rape without intercourse. He also faces four charges of sexual assault and two of bodily harm. In total, the investigation spans allegations from a “double-digit” number of alleged victims.
“I cannot go into further detail about the number of victims in the case beyond confirming that it is a double-digit number,” Kruszewski said, adding that police have concluded interviews with the accused and gathered evidence including text messages, witness testimonies, and results from property searches.
Hoiby has reportedly cooperated with investigators during the process. His defense attorney, Petar Sekulic, told the Associated Press that his client “is 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.”
The royal palace has yet to respond to requests for comment.
The case has dominated headlines in Norway, where the royal family enjoys widespread popularity. Hoiby previously lived with the crown couple and their children, Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus, but now resides separately in a nearby residence.
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Despite the seriousness of the charges, Hoiby remains free pending a potential trial and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
His mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, attracted significant media attention herself in 2001 when she married Crown Prince Haakon. At the time, she was a single mother and had been in a relationship with a man who had a criminal record for drug offences — a past that initially sparked public debate but was later largely accepted by the Norwegian public.
(With inputs from Associated Press)
