OSLO, Norway (AP) — The son of Norway's crown princess is going on trial Tuesday on charges that include rape, opening proceedings that are expected to last several weeks in a case that has cast a shadow on the royal family's image.
Marius Borg Høiby, 29, is the eldest son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit from a previous relationship and the stepson of the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon. He has no royal title or official duties.
Høiby has been under scrutiny since he was repeatedly arrested in 2024 on various allegations of wrongdoing. He was indicted in August but was free pending trial until Sunday, when police said he was arrested over new allegations of assault, threats with a knife and violation of a restraining order.
The Oslo district court on Monday granted their request to keep him in detention for up to four weeks on the grounds of a risk of reoffending. Defense lawyer Petar Sekulic said the arrest followed an alleged “incident” involving another person on Sunday. He declined to give details, but said Høiby contests his detention and his legal team was considering an appeal as soon as he and the other person can provide statements to police.
In the trial opening Tuesday at the Oslo court, Høiby faces 38 counts. They include rape, abuse in a close relationship against one former partner, acts of violence against another and transporting 3.5 kilos (7.7 pounds) of marijuana. Other charges include making death threats and traffic violations.
Prosecutors have said he could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted at the trial, which is scheduled to last until March 19. The court has said parts of the proceedings will be held behind closed doors.
The indictment centers on four alleged rapes between 2018 and November 2024; alleged violence and threats against a former partner between the summer of 2022 and the fall of 2023; and two alleged acts of violence against a subsequent partner, along with violations of a restraining order.
Høiby's defense team has said that he “denies all charges of sexual abuse, as well as the majority of the charges regarding violence.”
Haakon said last week that he and Mette-Marit do not plan to attend the trial and that the royal house does not intend to comment during the proceedings.
King Harald, 88, and the royals are generally popular in Norway, but the Høiby case has been a problem for the family's image.
And Høiby's trial is opening just as Mette-Marit faces renewed scrutiny over her past contacts with Jeffrey Epstein following the release on Friday of a new batch of documents from the Epstein files. They contained several hundred mentions of the crown princess, who already said in 2019 that she regretted having had contact with Epstein, Norwegian media reported.
Mette-Marit said in a statement 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.” She added: “I showed poor judgment and regret having had any contact with Epstein at all. It is simply embarrassing.”
Associated Press writer Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
Members of the media gather ahead of the first day of the trial against Marius Borg Høiby in Oslo, Norway Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (Lise Åserud/NTB Scanpix via AP)
FILE - Norway's Marius Borg Hoiby and Crown Princess Mette-Marit in Oslo, June 16, 2022. (Lise Aserud/NTB via AP, File)
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares surged on Tuesday, led by a nearly 7% jump in South Korea’s benchmark and a 3.9% rally in Tokyo that took the Nikkei 225 to a record as investors bought tech-related shares.
Markets are awaiting earnings reports from major companies to gauge the impact of various trends including U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and possible curbs on rare earths exports from China.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 climbed 3.9% to finish at 54,720.66, its highest close ever. Shares in equipment maker Disco Corp. jumped 7.1% while those in testing equipment maker Advantest gained 7%.
Share prices have been boosted by expectations that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party will regain a significant majority in the parliament in a Feb. 8 election, ushering in more market-friendly policies.
In South Korea, the Kospi gained 6.7% to 5,280.92, also a record. Investors appeared to regain confidence after the latest scare over a possible bubble in artificial intelligence as shares in Samsung Electronics Co. soared 11.2% while those in chip maker SK Hynix rocketed up 9.2%.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.3% to 26,844.51, while the Shanghai Composite added 1.3% to 4,066.48.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.9% to 8,857.10. Australia’s central bank raised its benchmark policy rate for the first time in two years, citing higher inflation than anticipated before it last cut rates.
On Monday, U.S. share prices rose while gold and silver prices sank further following their latest wild moves. The S&P 500 added 0.5% to 6,976.44, snapping a three-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1% to 49,407.66, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6% to 23,592.11.
Sandisk leaped 15.4% to lead the S&P 500. The data-storage company added to its 6.9% gain from Friday, after it reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It credited demand created by the artificial-intelligence boom, among other things. That helped offset a 2.9% drop for Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world’s move into AI technology.
The Walt Disney Co. fell 7.4% even though the entertainment giant reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It warned of challenges, such as international visitors declining at its U.S. theme parks.
Shares in software company Palantir Technologies soared 7% in after-hours trading after it reported its revenue in the last quarter climbed 70%.
The center of action in financial markets was again precious metals, where prices have yoyoed after stellar gains. Gold’s price have roughly doubled in just 12 months.
Gold gained 5.4% on Tuesday, while silver’s price rebounded by 10.2%.
Gold and silver prices have surged as investors search for safer things to own at a time of uncertainty over the status of the Federal Reserve, which may be set to become less independent, a U.S. stock market that critics say is expensive, threats of tariffs and heavy debt loads for governments worldwide.
Their prices cratered on Friday, including a 31.4% plunge for silver. Some on Wall Street saw it as a result of President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Fed.
The Fed’s chair has a big influence on the economy and markets worldwide by helping to dictate where the U.S. central bank moves interest rates. That affects prices for all kinds of investments, as the Fed tries to keep the U.S. job market humming without letting inflation get out of control.
In other dealings early Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude fell 34 cents to $61.80 a barrel. Brent crude shed 34 cents to $65.96 a barrel.
The U.S. dollar declined to 155.45 Japanese yen from 155.61 yen. The euro cost $1.1816, up from $1.1791.
Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama
Specialist Anthony Matesic works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A currency trader reacts near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top center, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top left, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
