Marius Borg Høiby, the son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit, has denied allegations that he assaulted two former girlfriends in a series of police interviews conducted on Wednesday.
The allegations stem from accusations made by Nora Haukland and Juliane Snekkestad, who claim that Marius physically and psychologically abused them.
These allegations followed an incident on 4 August, in which Marius is said to have assaulted a woman in her 20s, believed to be his current girlfriend. While he admitted to the assault in this case, following eight police interviews, Marius denied the claims made by his former partners.
His defense lawyer, Øyvind Bratlien, stated: “Marius Borg Høiby has completed his interrogations. He was questioned by the police eight times, during which he explained himself in detail.” Bratlien continued, “Marius has acknowledged having had three turbulent relationships and takes responsibility for his part in them. He has explained the issues in one of the relationships. However, he denies guilt in the cases involving Haukland and Snekkestad.”
During the interviews, Marius also admitted to sending a threatening message to another man. According to TV2, the man received an Instagram message from Marius stating that he was “a [expletive] dead man.”
Bratlien added: “On the most serious parts of the charges, he denies criminal guilt.”
After being detained for 30 hours at the Oslo police station on 4 August, Marius issued an apology. In a statement, he said: “Last weekend, something happened that should never have happened. I committed bodily harm and destroyed objects in an apartment while intoxicated, having consumed alcohol and cocaine after an argument.
“I have several mental health issues, which have been a challenge throughout my life. I have struggled with substance abuse for years and have been in treatment before. I will now return to treatment and take it seriously.”
He further acknowledged, “Drug use and my diagnoses do not excuse my actions. I want to take responsibility for what happened in the Frogner apartment and give sincere explanations to the police. I also apologize to my family. I know my actions have deeply affected you.”
Marius was arrested again on 15 September. It was later revealed that he had contacted one of the alleged victims on 10 September from a hidden phone number, violating a restraining order.
Juliane Snekkestad’s assistant lawyer, Petter Grødem, commented after the interviews, saying: “I spoke briefly with Juliane. She had hoped he would admit to the accusations, but unfortunately, she is not surprised that this has not happened.”
