The Crown Princess in the Files: 471 Emails, a Palm Beach Stay, and Jeffrey Epstein's Norwegian 'Sweetheart'

Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway appears in more than 1,000 documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice under the Epstein Files Transparency Act of 2025. The records, made public in January and February 2026, contain direct email correspondence between Mette-Marit and Jeffrey Epstein spanning from late 2011 through at least early 2014, years after his 2008 federal conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.

The emails, recovered from Epstein's servers and identified by the sender address "H.K.H. Kronprinsessen" (Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess), are among the most extensive communications between Epstein and any head-of-state-level figure in the released files. They document a relationship marked by intimate personal confessions, discussions of adultery and naked women, complaints about royal duties, and what one royal historian called the lending of "royal legitimacy" to a convicted sex offender.

How It Began: Davos 2011

The connection originated at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2011. Physicist and Epstein associate Lawrence Krauss messaged Epstein that "the beautiful young crown princess of norway wishes you were here." EFTA00648375

The principal intermediary was Boris Nikolic, a biotech investor and longtime adviser to Bill Gates. In February 2011, Nikolic sent Epstein a message describing an unnamed woman as "GREAT! Twisted ;) Not a typical royalty" and included a Google Images link pointing to search results for "Mette-marit." EFTA02021990 The characterization "twisted" and "not a typical royalty" framed the Crown Princess as someone Epstein would find interesting.

By October 2011, direct email correspondence between Epstein and Mette-Marit was underway. The earliest recovered exchanges show a rapid, intense back-and-forth: on October 23 and 24, 2011 alone, the two exchanged more than a dozen messages. EFTA01772124 In one of these early emails, Mette-Marit wrote to Epstein: "Every day is a constant struggle of scratching the soul just enough to still be able to chose the light." Epstein replied: "I can see you have yet to find a place of peace." EFTA00922805 She had already acknowledged to Epstein that she had searched his name online and the results "didn't look good," yet continued the relationship.

"Wife Hunt," Adultery, and "Scandis"

On October 15, 2012, Epstein wrote to the Crown Princess: "what is the weather like, I am on my wife hunt. paris is proving interesting but i prefer scandinavians." Her reply: "Paris good for adultery Scandis better wife material But then again Who am I to talk?" EFTA02033693 A sitting Crown Princess was joking about adultery and Scandinavian women with a man convicted of sex crimes involving minors.

Six days later, on October 21, she emailed Epstein from the wedding of Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg: "Boring wedding Was like some kind of old movie Where you know the characters are not hanging around for much long Books more books." EFTA01764867 She was describing the wedding of a fellow European royal as tedious while corresponding with Epstein from the event.

"Naked Women" for a Fifteen-Year-Old

On November 13, 2012, Mette-Marit asked Epstein: "Is it inappropriate for a mother to suggest two naked women carrying a surfboard for my 15 yr old sons wallpaper?" Epstein's response: "let them decide, mother should stay out of it." EFTA01977816 The son referenced was Marius Borg Hoiby, who in 2026 faced 38 criminal charges in Oslo, including four counts of rape.

The following day, November 12, 2012, an email with the subject line "You r such a sweetheart" shows Epstein checking in on the Crown Princess: "how are you, you sounded beat? hope you are feeling better, st baits will be fun." EFTA01763958 The reference to St. Barts, a frequent Epstein destination, suggests the two were discussing a potential meetup in the Caribbean.

Royal Duties as Prison, Epstein as Escape

A recurring theme in the correspondence is Mette-Marit's frustration with official royal engagements and her presentation of Epstein as an intellectual escape. On September 22, 2012, she messaged Epstein a single word from an official function: "@boringparty." The next morning she followed up: "Come save us. Im dying of boredom." Epstein responded by offering to send her a book. EFTA02030674 EFTA01886833

Later that day, she wrote: "Have plans but would be great to catch up over tea one day so you can tickle my brain." EFTA01887288 In a separate exchange, she told Epstein directly: "You always make me smile. Because you tickle my brain." EFTA00947189

The pattern visible across dozens of emails is consistent: a Crown Princess treating her constitutional role as an obligation to endure and her correspondence with Epstein as relief from it.

The Love Letter, January 2013

On January 6, 2013, Mette-Marit sent Epstein an unusually long and emotional message in response to what she described as a tender letter from him. "Jeffrey," she wrote, "It has taken me some time to respond Because I was in some way so overwhelmed by emotion from your email." She then made a confession: "I know it is silly to smoke It pulls me not only physically towards darkness Isn't it so telling that that I started smoking again exactly when I met him." She added: "I appreciate the tenderness in your email So I followed up. The smoking course is booked." EFTA00951170

The reference to "him" is to an unnamed man, not Epstein. But the willingness to share this level of personal vulnerability with a convicted sex offender, including details about her relationship with another man, reflects the depth of the connection documented in the files. Media reports based on related files indicate that in other messages, she described this man as someone who "made me feel like the most beautiful woman on earth."

The subject line of the email was "Re: Great to see u," indicating this message followed a recent in-person meeting. This aligns with reports that Mette-Marit stayed at Epstein's Palm Beach estate for several days around this time, reportedly bringing her personal "guru" to the villa where Epstein had sexually abused young girls.

Boris Nikolic: The Constant Go-Between

Boris Nikolic surfaces repeatedly as the connective tissue between Epstein and the Norwegian royal family. On November 13, 2013, Nikolic forwarded Epstein a Hello Magazine article about Crown Princess Mette-Marit's neck surgery with a terse note: "Will keep you posted. I am talking to Hakkon non-stop and he will be with her during a surgery." EFTA02373909 He used the informal spelling of Crown Prince Haakon's name and signed only with "B."

This email is significant for two reasons. First, it shows Nikolic served as a direct channel between Epstein and the Norwegian royal household as late as November 2013, after Mette-Marit later claimed to have distanced herself. Second, it shows Nikolic had a personal enough relationship with Crown Prince Haakon to be "talking to Hakkon non-stop" about royal medical matters.

Nikolic appeared in Epstein's will as a successor executor and has been linked to multiple Epstein-adjacent figures in the files.

2019 Claims vs. 2026 Evidence

In 2019, when the extent of Epstein's crimes resurfaced following his arrest and death, the Norwegian Royal Court issued a statement. Mette-Marit said she "deeply regretted" the friendship. The palace stated she had met Epstein "on a few occasions between 2011 and 2013" and that contact had ceased.

The 2026 DOJ release contradicted this account on multiple points. The files show contact extending into at least 2014, with Nikolic still serving as intermediary in November 2013. The palace's description of "a few occasions" does not square with hundreds of emails and a multi-day stay at Epstein's Palm Beach residence.

The claim that Mette-Marit did not know about Epstein's criminal past was directly undercut by the files: she admitted to Epstein in 2011 that she had googled him and that the results "didn't look good." She maintained the relationship for at least three more years.

The Norwegian Network

Mette-Marit was not the only prominent Norwegian in Epstein's orbit. The DOJ files contain more than 4,000 references to Terje Rod-Larsen, a Norwegian diplomat who served as UN Special Envoy for Lebanon. Rod-Larsen's children were listed among the beneficiaries of Epstein's will, and he borrowed money from Epstein.

Former Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland, who also chaired the Norwegian Nobel Committee, appears in more than 3,000 OCR text references in the files. In 2026, Norwegian police opened a criminal investigation into Jagland on suspicion of "gross corruption" linked to gifts, loans, and benefits from Epstein.

Former Foreign Minister Borge Brende, now president of the World Economic Forum, had dinner with Epstein in 2018 and 2019. Mona Juul, a Norwegian diplomat married to Rod-Larsen, also appears in the files.

Together, these figures represent a concentrated Norwegian network that Epstein cultivated over more than a decade.

Political Fallout

The fallout in Norway has been severe. On February 10, 2026, the Standing Committee on Scrutiny and Constitutional Affairs of the Storting (Norwegian parliament) voted to establish an independent Commission of Inquiry into Epstein's connections to Norwegian citizens and to hold public hearings. The committee chair, Per-Willy Amundsen, stated in parliament that "the Crown Princess may have deceived the Norwegian people."

Polling showed a dramatic shift in public opinion. Only 27% of Norwegians approve of Mette-Marit as future queen. A majority now consider that she should not hold the title. Charities including the Norwegian Red Cross and the Norwegian Guide and Scout Association have held internal meetings to discuss her patronage, and at least one major NGO, Sex og Samfunn, has removed her as patron.

Royal historian Trond Noren Isaksen offered a structural analysis: Mette-Marit had lent Epstein "royal legitimacy." Having a sitting Crown Princess as a personal friend gave Epstein access and credibility in European circles that money alone could not buy.

The parliament ultimately voted to maintain the monarchy. But the vote itself was unprecedented, forced by a scandal that Swedish royal commentator Johan Lindwall described as "the biggest royal scandal in modern history, bigger than Prince Andrew's."

Health and Public Absence

In March 2026, the palace acknowledged "a clear negative development in the Crown Princess's health recently" and said an assessment was underway for a possible lung transplant. Mette-Marit, who was diagnosed with chronic lung fibrosis in 2018, had been absent from public life for more than five weeks. Some commentators suggested that a withdrawal from royal duties on health grounds could serve as a resolution to the political crisis.

Crown Princess Mette-Marit has not been charged with any crime. She stated through the Royal Court in 2019 that she regretted the contact and should have investigated Epstein's background more thoroughly before engaging with him.