The emails, which include details about visiting Epstein’s residence and jokes about his pursuit of women, appear to show that the Norwegian crown princess was closer to him than the palace had previously acknowledged. The emails were sent between 2011 and 2013 from an account labelled H.K.H. Kronprinsessen, which means “Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess” in Norwegian, and sometimes refer to Epstein with terms of endearment.
Mette-Marit said in a statement Monday that she took “responsibility for not having investigated Epstein’s background more thoroughly” and that she regretted “having had any contact with Epstein”. She said Epstein’s victims had her “deep sympathy and solidarity”.
A spokesperson for the Norwegian royal family declined to comment further.
The release of the emails, which came just days before the crown princess’ son is set to stand trial in a rape case, have thrown the Norwegian royal family into further turmoil.
“I understand why many people have reacted strongly to the revelations in the documents,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store of Norway said in a statement on Sunday. “I have too.”
“Crown Princess Mette-Marit has herself acknowledged that she has exercised poor judgment, and I agree with her,” he added.
Kjetil B. Alstadheim, the political editor at Aftenposten, one of Norway’s largest newspapers, asked in an essay Sunday: “Can Mette-Marit become queen after this?”
The new batch of files has also convulsed Britain and its royal family. The documents include what appear to be compromising photos of Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, and emails hinting at Epstein’s cosy friendship with Ferguson, once Duchess of York.
Mountbatten-Windsor was stripped of his title last year because of previous revelations about his ties to Epstein. Amid the scandal, Ferguson also stopped using her courtesy title, the Duchess of York, which she continued to use for decades after their 1996 divorce.
The emails are from an account labelled only “Sarah,” and some personal information is redacted in the release. But key details, including references to “the Duchess,” suggest they are from Ferguson.
A 2010 email, apparently from Ferguson, refers to Epstein as “a legend,” adding, “I am at your service. Just marry me.”
Another email from 2009 refers to Epstein as the “brother I always wished for”. Another from the same year points to him paying for flights for “the Duchess and the girls,” apparently referencing travel for Ferguson and her daughters, Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice. Other emails appear to show Ferguson telling Epstein she urgently needs money for rent after a failed business venture.
In 2011, Ferguson had admitted that Epstein helped pay off her debts and apologised for her “terrible error of judgment” in “having anything to do with Jeffrey Epstein”.
Representatives for the British royal family did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Representatives for Ferguson were not immediately available for comment.
In Norway, too, Mette-Marit’s relationship with Epstein was already known. In 2019, the palace told Norway’s main financial newspaper that she was not aware of the scope of the crimes he had been convicted of, or their nature, when she was in contact with him.
The newly released files suggest that they were closer than previously reported. The emails that appear to be from the crown princess, some of which are signed “Mm” and “Mette m,” include discussions of shopping trips, book recommendations, vacations, illnesses and social obligations.
In emails from 2013, Epstein’s team made plans for a “Mette” to visit “the PB house” – he had a house in Palm Beach, Florida – and to send his driver to retrieve her from a Miami airport.
The emails also repeatedly express warmth toward Epstein.
“You r such a sweetheart,” said one email sent from H.K.H. Kronprinsessen.
“Are you coming over to see me soon???” said another. “I miss my crazy friend.”
The emails also feature repeated jokes about Epstein’s pursuit of women.
“I am on my wife hunt,” he wrote in 2012. “Paris is proving interesting but I prefer Scandinavians.”
“Paris good for adultery,” an email sent from H.K.H. Kronprinsessen replied, adding, “Scandis better wife material.”
One email from 2011 suggests that the crown princess became aware of wrongdoing on Epstein’s part, although it is unclear what it is referring to.
“Googled u after last email,” the email reads. “Agree didn’t look too good : )”
The latest revelations have threatened to again jeopardise Mette-Marit’s public standing. Her engagement to Crown Prince Haakon shocked Norway, but days before the wedding in 2001, she sought to soothe fears by publicly apologising for her “wild life” and condemning drug use.
She has since won over some Norwegians, but her ties to Epstein have put her under new scrutiny.
“It is not just the crown princess who has shown exceptionally poor judgment, but an entire state apparatus that has played bankrupt with Norway’s international reputation,” Ole-Jorgen Schulsrud-Hansen, a royal commentator for Norway’s TV2, wrote in an essay last week.
The Norwegian princess’ son, Marius Borg Hoiby, who has no title or official royal duties, is set to stand trial Tuesday. He has been charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault. A lawyer for Borg Hoiby has said that he “doesn’t acknowledge any wrongdoing in most of the cases – especially the cases regarding sexual abuse and violence”.
Borg Hoiby was 4 years old when his mother married Haakon, now his stepfather, in 2001.
Belgium’s Prince Laurent admits meeting Epstein twice
Belgium’s Prince Laurent said Monday he had two “one-on-one” meetings with Epstein, after his name appeared in files related to the investigation.
Laurent, King Philippe’s younger brother, told the Belga news agency that the encounters, which happened at Epstein’s request, date back to the early 1990s and the early 2000s.
The prince, 62, who is not accused of wrongdoing, denied ever meeting the disgraced financier at “public or group events”.
The clarification came after an earlier statement said Laurent had “never, directly or indirectly, attended an event” with Epstein and his entourage.
Earlier on Monday, the prince said Epstein reached out to him as he worked as an intern at the United Nations and, later, at a New York bank, seeking an introduction to his royal parents.
Laurent said he refused that and other overtures before being contacted again about a decade later, when the financier invited him to a Paris dinner with “a head of state and wealthy and influential men”.
The prince said he declined the offer.
In September, Laurent revealed that he had fathered a son during a love affair with a Flemish model-turned-singer before marrying in 2003.
– Additional reporting AFP
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Written by: Amelia Nierenberg and Megan Specia
©2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES
