Marius Borg Hoiby (L) and Norwegian crown princess Mette-Marit attend a government event in Oslo, Norway, on June 16, 2022, and Norwegian police arrested Hoiby on Monday on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman and other charges. File Photo by Lise Aserud/EPA-EFE
Nov. 19 (UPI) — Marius Borg Hoiby, 27, is under arrest for suspicion of rape involving someone who was unconscious and otherwise incapable of resisting the act, Norway Police announced on Tuesday.
Police arrested Hoiby Monday night on the preliminary charge of rape plus preliminary charges accusing him of abuse in close relationships, violating a restraining order and driving without a license.
A preliminary charge is not a formal criminal charge but enables Norwegian police to arrest and detain suspects while investigating potential crimes.
A woman in her 20s and who did not know Hoiby prior to the incident in question is the alleged victim, her attorney told CNN.
Hoiby was still being held at a detention center on Tuesday and his attorney Oyvind Bratlien told Norwegian public broadcaster NRK that he denies the preliminary charges against him.
NRK reports indicated Hoiby also has been charged with offenses involving four other women and a man.
Three of the women were in relationships with Hoiby, and he is accused of engaging in abuse in close relationships with those three women.
Hoiby also is charged with criminal damage and assault arising from an incident in August in Oslo involving one of the three women.
He also is accused of threatening to kill a man in his 20s, NRK reported,.
Hoiby is the eldest child of Mette-Marit, who became Norway’s crown princess when she married crown prince Haakon in 2001.
He was born prior to his mother’s relationship and subsequent marriage to crown prince Haakon.