Princess Mette-Marit's eldest son, accused of rape, is currently in pre-trial detention. The young man is the black sheep of the Norwegian royal family.
Her blond face appears on the front pages of Norwegian newspapers this week. Marius Borg Hoiby, the son of Princess Mette-Marit, 27, was arrested on Monday November 18. He is suspected of two rapes.
Even though Marius is not the son of Prince Haakon and has no princely title, the affair shakes the Norwegian royal family. Especially since this is not the first time that the young man with the jet-setter look has made headlines in Norway.
Last August, the princess's son had already been arrested for violence against an ex-partner under the influence of alcohol and cocaine and, again, in September for violation of a restraining order. He is now suspected of two rapes.
Mental disorders and substance abuse
In September, Marius Borg Hoiby cited “mental disorders” and his “drug addiction”, claiming to be ready to seek treatment.
“I suffer from several mental health conditions, which means that throughout my upbringing and adult life I have had, and still have, difficulties. I have long struggled with substance abuse, for which I have had treatment in the past. I will now return to this treatment and take it very seriously.”
But seriousness is not the main quality of this young man who grew up in the luxury of the royal family, but without having any official role or obligations himself. For years, Marius' escapades have made headlines in the Norwegian tabloid press.
The blond boy, in all the photos of the royal family, has long been nicknamed by the Norwegians, “little Marius”. A particularly cruel nickname, when we know that it refers to a character from 19th century Norwegian literature, a child born out of wedlock, small and not very intelligent, allowed to go to school, despite a lower status to that of his comrades from good society…
Because although he was raised at the royal palace and participated in many official events, Marius was not a prince.
Youthful mistakes
Born on January 13, 1997 in Oslo, Marius was the result of Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby's short-lived affair with a certain Morten Borg, a man convicted of drug-related crimes. The young woman also had to publicly apologize for her tumultuous past, and condemn drug use before being able to marry the prince.
If the entry into the royal family of a commoner with an unpolitically correct past, already the mother of a child, caused a scandal at the time, the Norwegians learned to appreciate the princess, who fulfilled her role seriously. Especially since Mette-Marit is destined to become Queen of Norway, alongside her husband Haakon, the day he succeeds his father, King Harald V.
Marius Borg Høiby was 4 years old when his mother married the prince. He appears on the balcony, in the arms of Prince Haakon, on their wedding day. The couple gave birth three years later to Princess Ingrid Alexandra, now 20 years old, then to Prince Sverre Magnus, 18 years old. The three children were raised together.
From the beginning of the 2000s, the Norwegian tabloid press became passionate about the blond boy, and followed his every move. Every misstep makes headlines. When in 2012, at the age of 15, he published family photos on Instagram, the press accused him of endangering the security of the royal family.
“A difficult role”
“Marius has always had a difficult role to define in the public sphere,” wrote Mette Marit in an open letter on the occasion of her eldest son’s 20th birthday, regretting in particular that the young man was “subject to pressure from the from part of the Norwegian press”.
“Marius has become the symbol of the atypical choice we made in getting married, at the same time, he will not assume public functions like his brothers and sisters.”
It was at this time that the young man left to study business in Santa Monica, California. Studies interrupted before obtaining a diploma.
The young person then carries out several very diverse activities. He was for a time an intern with the German stylist Philip Plein, then editor-in-chief of a fashion magazine, and a motorcycle mechanic. He also appears in the Norwegian series SKAM.
“Marius does not want to live in the public eye,” Mette-Marit wrote in his open letter to the press.
Drugs, parties and diplomatic passports
Yet the media continue to hound him and criticize his jet-setting lifestyle. The tabloid Dagbladet echoes his parties and his escapades, surrounded by his friends, reality TV stars and influencers.
There has been no shortage of opportunities to make the front page of the tabloids in recent years. He was notably accused of having used a diplomatic passport on several occasions, notably to escape the police abroad, while he was under the influence of drugs. In 2017, he was convicted of drug possession at a music festival.
The Norwegian royal family remains stoic each time, and avoids commenting. But this time the accusations against Marius Borg Høiby are even more serious, pushing Prince Haakon to come out of his reserve:
“Marius faces serious charges,” the prince told broadcaster NRK earlier this week. “It is up to the police and the courts to deal with it. I am convinced that they will do it correctly and fairly.”
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