Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Read more
The stepson of Norway’s crown prince should be sentenced to seven years and seven months in prison on charges of raping four women as well as domestic abuse and other crimes, the prosecutor in the trial told an Oslo court on Wednesday.
Marius Borg Hoiby, 29, who joined the royal family when his mother Mette-Marit married Crown Prince Haakon in 2001, has pleaded not guilty to the most severe accusations against him, including those of rape, while admitting to some lesser charges.
The seven-week trial, which is due to end on Thursday, has transfixed the Nordic country, detailing Hoiby’s drug addiction, self-made videos of sexual encounters and more than 800 electronic messages entered into evidence.
The trial coincided with Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s apology for “poor judgment” in maintaining contact with the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after he was convicted in 2008.
Both events have hurt the overall popularity of the monarchy, according to opinion polls.
Lead prosecutor Sturla Henriksboe on Wednesday set out the sentence he was seeking for the 40 charges against Hoiby, which included several counts of rape which investigators said happened when the alleged victims were sleeping or unconscious.
open image in gallery
A court sketch shows Marius Borg Hoiby during the first day of the trial against him, which takes place at the Oslo District Court in Oslo, Norway February 3, 2026 (NTB)
Hoiby pleaded guilty at the start of the trial to charges that carry lighter sentences, including offensive sexual behaviour, driving too fast and driving without a valid licence.
Henriksboe told the court that Hoiby must be treated like any other Norwegian, facing neither tougher nor milder punishment for being part of the country’s most prominent family.
But in tearful testimony last week, Hoiby said heavy media coverage of his trial had made him “an object of hatred” and portrayed him as a monster, leading to anxiety and clinical depression.
“Hoiby is no monster. None of us are,” Henriksboe said at the beginning of his closing argument on Monday. “He must not be sentenced for who he is, but for what he did.”
