Norway’s scandal-plagued Crown Princess Mette-Marit — whose flirty missives to perv Jeffrey Epstein were released last week — is caught in yet another family scandal after her son was arrested just a day before his high-profile rape trial.
Marius Borg Høiby, 29, was taken into custody on Sunday night and is accused of assault, making threats with a knife, and violating a restraining order, according to Norwegian police.
The Oslo district court ruled Monday that Høiby would be kept in kail for up to four weeks, with the princess’ eldest son still expected to attend trial on Tuesday for a number of charges, including the rape of four women.
Sunday’s “incident” allegedly involved Høiby and another unnamed person, both of whom are scheduled to provide statements to police by this weekend, defense attorneys told the Associated Press.
Høiby’s lawyer, Petar Sekulic, said the 29-year-old contests his detention and is working on an appeal to see him released.
Høiby, who is not considered a public figure despite being the stepson of the crown prince, is facing 38 charges, including the rape of four unconscious women and assaulting and threatening a girlfriend.
If found guilty, Høiby could face more than 10 years in prison.
Høiby is the son of Mette-Marit and convicted drug felon Morten Borg, who was arrested multiple times in the 1990s for possession of cocaine.
Borg, who said he was never in a relationship with Mette-Marit, was allegedly known to frequent Oslo’s nightlife scene and was in prison in 1998 when Høiby was born, The Irish Times reported.
He was the roommate of the boyfriend Mette-Marit had before she met Crown Prince Haakon — heir to the Norwegian throne.
Mette-Marit, who remains out of the public eye as she deals with an incurable lung disease, has been a controversial figure ever since her 2001 wedding to the prince.
Prior to her son’s latest arrest, Mette-Marit was under hot water over the weekend after the latest batch of documents from Jeffery Epstein’s files revealed she wrote fawning and flirty emails to the pedophile sex-trafficker.
The crown princess issued an apology to Epstein’s victims on Saturday, saying she “must take responsibility for not having investigated Epstein’s background more thoroughly, and for not realizing sooner what kind of person he was.”
Neither Mette-Marit nor Prince Haakon will attend Høiby’s trial.
Mette-Marit’s side of the family, however, is not the only source of negative publicity for Norway’s royal family.
Haakon’s sister, Princess Märtha Louise, has also drawn scrutiny after her 2024 marriage to American Durek Verrett, a self-proclaimed shaman.
With Post wires
