Now, the Norwegian crown princess is facing backlash over her ties with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Norway’s King Harald, Europe’s oldest reigning monarch, will turn 89 later this month. But a few days before the country celebrates its king’s birthday, Crown Princess Mette-Marit has come under scrutiny after her name appeared in the latest batch of Epstein files nearly 1,000 times.
What was the exchange?
In an exchange in 2012, Marit had asked Epstein if it was “inappropriate for a mother to suggest two naked women carrying a surfboard for my 15 yr old sons wallpaper?”
In several emails sent in 2012 by Marit to Esptein, the Crown Princess referred to the sex offender as “sweetheart”, “soft hearted” and “very charming”. To this, Epstein replied: “Let them decide” and advised her to “stay out of it”.
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Another conversation shows Epstein telling Mette-Marit that he was on a “wife hunt”, adding that “Paris is proving interesting but I prefer scandinavians (sic)”.
Marit replied to the email saying that Paris is “good for adultery” and “Scandis better wife material”.
The documents also shed light on email exchanges in 2013 showing Mette-Marit renting an Epstein-owned property in Palm Beach, Florida, for some days, with the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation saying that her stay was arranged via a mutual friend.
In 2019, Marit had said that she regrets having ties with Epstein.
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“It is important for me to apologize to all of you whom I have disappointed. Some of the content of the messages between Epstein and me does not represent the person I want to be. I also apologise for the situation I have put the Royal Family in, especially the King and Queen.”
Soon after the files were released, Marit said ina statement to CNN that she “must take responsibility for not having investigated Epstein’s background more thoroughly, and for not realizing sooner what kind of person he was. I showed poor judgment and regret having had any contact with Epstein at all. It is simply embarrassing.”
But the Norwegian Crown Princess isn’t the only one in the country mentioned in the Epstein files.
The Norwegian Economic Crime Investigation Service, a unit that consists of both police and prosecutors are looking into whether the country’s former Prime Minister Thorbjørn Jagland received gifts, travel or loans from Epstein.
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Jagland, who served as the country’s Prime Minister from 1996 to 1997, was also a member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
The newly released documents mention Jagland had visited Epstein Island with his family back in 2014, when he held the position of the chairman of the Nobel committee.
