A second woman has testified at a court in Oslo, accusing the son of Norway’s crown princess of raping her while she slept.

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. Høiby has no royal title or official duties.

He is on trial for multiple alleged offences with 38 counts against him, including four charges of rape, sexual assault, abuse in a close relationship against one former partner and acts of violence against another, as well as transporting 3.5 kilograms of marijuana, breaking a restraining order and aggravated assault. Others include making death threats and traffic violations.

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Son of Norway’s crown princess stands trial on rape, domestic violence and 38 charges

Høiby stood while prosecutor Sturla Henriksbø read out the 38 counts against him in the Oslo district court on Feb. 3, asking him if he pleaded guilty. He replied “no” to the most serious charges, including the four counts of rape.

Prosecutors have said that Høiby could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted in the trial, which is scheduled to last until March 19. Seven accusers are expected to testify.

Second woman testifies

On Tuesday, during the second week of the trial, the woman testified about an alleged rape that the prosecution said took place on Oct. 3, 2023, following an after-party in an apartment, Agence France-Presse reports.

After consensual sex, the woman said she woke up after Høiby had resumed sexual relations with her, which she said were not consensual.

“I remember waking up when he was already underway. I thought, ‘I don’t understand how someone can have sex with someone who’s sleeping,’” she told the court.

“Then, I mostly had the feeling I was dissociating, leaving my own body,” she said. “It was painful. My body wasn’t ready for it.”

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“That’s always been my worst nightmare,” she said, adding that she closed her eyes “so I wouldn’t have to take part in my own assault.”

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Son of Norway’s crown princess charged with rape and assault

The prosecution submitted video evidence that was filmed with Høiby’s phone to prove that the sex that took place happened when the woman was not in a state to say no.

Prosecutor Sturla Henriksbro said the five-second video, discovered on Høiby’s phone by police, showed the woman asleep at the time of the alleged assault. They also shared data from the woman’s fitness watch to show that she was asleep at the time.

The woman told the court that the footage captured by Høiby was taken without her knowledge.

Høiby told the court that the woman “was awake when I had sex with her,” before correcting himself and saying, “When we had sex together.”

“I don’t have sex with women who are asleep,” Høiby added.

“I don’t understand: if we had sex three or four times before, and I woke her up each time, why the hell would I have had sex with her without waking her the last time?”

First woman’s testimony

Last week, the court heard testimony from another woman who claimed that Høiby raped her at an after-party in the basement of his parents’ estate outside Oslo in December 2018.

The woman told the court that she “100 per cent” believes that she had been drugged during the after-party, the BBC reports.

The woman said she felt “betrayal and shock” after police showed her videos of Høiby allegedly sexually assaulting her.

She said she had no memory of what happened and referred to her memory as a “black hole.”

When asked about the alleged rape in 2018, Høiby told the court that he did not remember taking videos and denied that he had raped the woman. He said they had consensual sex after other people at the after-party had gone to bed.

When asked by the prosecutor if the woman was awake when they had sex, Høiby said, “I don’t sleep with women who aren’t awake.”

Høiby has been under scrutiny since he was repeatedly arrested in 2024 amid allegations of rape and on preliminary charges of bodily harm and criminal damage.

The royal palace said it was up to the courts to handle the case and reach a decision.

Royal problems

The royals are generally popular in Norway, but the Høiby case has been a problem for the family’s image.

The trial opened at a particularly sensitive moment. Mette-Marit faces renewed scrutiny over her past contacts with Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019 in a New York jail cell as he faced sex trafficking charges, following the release of a new batch of documents from the Epstein files.

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Epstein scandal deepens pressure on U.K.’s Starmer, Royals

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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. The documents, which include email exchanges, showed that Mette-Marit borrowed an Epstein-owned property in Palm Beach, Fla., for several days in 2013. Norwegian broadcaster NRK reported that the stay was arranged through a mutual friend, which was later confirmed by the royal household.

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.”

— With files from The Associated Press

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

While Canadians in Cuba are waiting for flights home as an energy crisis worsens in the nation amid a U.S. oil blockade, those who send aid are struggling to do so.

Cuba warned international airlines on Feb. 9 that aviation fuel would no longer be available on the island, beginning Feb. 10, in the latest sign of fast-worsening conditions as the United States moves to cut off the communist-run nation’s oil supply.

Major Canadian airlines, including Air Canada, WestJet and Air Transat, have already suspended service to Cuba. All three airlines have confirmed they plan to bring travellers back home to Canada.

Calgary-based WestJet says its decision to wind down winter operations will affect WestJet, Sunwing Vacations, WestJet Vacations, and Vacances WestJet Quebec.

Air Canada has said its decision to cancel service to Cuba comes after “following advisories issued by governments regarding the unreliability of the aviation fuel supply at Cuban airports.”

Venezuela has historically been a major supplier of oil to Cuba but in early 2026, ceased those oil exports as a result of recent geopolitical turmoil after it was taken over by the United States.

The Trump administration is cutting Cuba off from using its traditional fuel sources in an effort to put pressure on the island nation off the coast of Florida, which has been under strict economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. government for decades.

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Air Canada suspends flights to Cuba amid fuel shortage

Amid the efforts to get Canadians out, those who provide charitable aid say they are now struggling to send that in.

“The Cuban people are devastated,” said Jennifer Raymer, the director of Together for Cuba. “They rely on tourists coming down there, obviously, for employment and taxi services and hotels and food and, you know, Canadians are known to bring aid.”

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The Ontario-based aid agency sends 600 large duffle bags, weighing about 14,000 kg, full of medicine, surgical supplies and other medical aid to Cuba each year.

“I knew that as soon as this all came down — that all the airlines would stop — we would be stuck here in Canada without being able to get the aid in. I haven’t slept since yesterday.”

Halting shipments will make life even more difficult in the impoverished island nation.

“The Cuban people are going to have an even harder struggle. A lot of our medical bags include prescription medication for heart and diabetes and different things, and as well as surgical bags. These bags are life-saving,” Raymer said.

As the airlines wind down their operations to Cuba, Raymer was hoping one of them would agree to take the medical supplies on one of the empty flights being sent to Cuba to evacuate the more than 7,000 stranded Canadian tourists.

So far, none have stepped up.

“It means that people can’t have surgeries or get the medications that they need. There are surgical packs in there that people are waiting for, and now they’re sitting in London, Ont.,” Raymer said.

“We’re struggling to find a way to get them out.”

NDP interim leader Don Davies said Tuesday that Canada must provide immediate support to Cuba in the face of “escalating aggression” from the Trump administration.

“Recent U.S. actions are provoking a severe humanitarian crisis and disrupting travel across the region, leaving Canadians stranded as airlines suspend flights,” Davies said in a statement.

“By threatening tariffs on any third country that transports fuel to the island, the Trump administration is expanding U.S. economic coercion in dangerous new ways.”

Davies argued that Prime Minister Mark Carney has remained “silent” in the face of Trump’s aggression towards Cuba.

“Canada must stand with the Cuban people and resist the Trump administration’s aggression clearly and directly. This is a defining test of principle and we must not fail it,” he said.

–with files from The Canadian Press

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The families of two Melbourne teenagers who died after drinking tainted alcohol in Laos have criticized the AU$185 (approximately $176 CAD) fines received by staff members who served the deadly drinks.

Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, 19, died after they were served tainted alcohol laced with methanol at the Nana Backpacker Hostel in November 2024, part of a mass poisoning that also killed two Danish women, a U.S. tourist and a British woman.

The two 19-year-old Australian women fell ill following a night out drinking with a group and failed to check out from the Nana Backpacker Hostel as planned. The women were found sick in their room and then taken to Thailand for emergency treatment, where both died in hospital.

Thai authorities confirmed that Jones had died by “brain swelling due to high levels of methanol found in her system.”

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2nd Australian teen dies from tainted liquor in Laos; 6 tourists dead in total

The women’s fathers, Shaun Bowles and Mark Jones, said they were uninformed about the court case involving the hostel staff, which took place at the People’s Court of Vang Vieng in Laos.

They were part of a group chat with the families of the victims that provided them with updates and that’s how they learned 10 people connected to the hostel faced a judge in late January.

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Those 10 people were fined the AU$185 each and given a suspended sentence for destroying evidence, 9News reports.

“We were shocked by the absolute injustice for our girls and the others,” Jones said. “We have had no correspondence with anyone from the Laos government. We had no idea the court case was going ahead.

“To think that the Laos authorities believe that those who were involved in killing our daughters is worth $185 is absolutely disgraceful.”

The fathers initially thought the court case was linked to the deaths of their daughters, but the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that the charge for destruction of evidence was linked to the death of the American tourist.

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Laos mass alcohol poisoning: Investigation underway following deaths of 6 tourists

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the Department of Foreign Affairs has been in communication with the Bowles and Jones families.

“I have made it clear to my Lao counterpart that Australia expects full accountability,” Wong said in a statement. “I have also made it clear that charges should reflect the seriousness of the tragedy which left six people dead, including Holly and Bianca.”

“The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is aware that the Vang Vieng District Court sentenced individuals over the destruction of evidence in relation to the death of a US citizen,” Wong said. “We continue to press Lao authorities on the cases relating to Holly and Bianca’s deaths, and we will continue to support Holly and Bianca’s families at this distressing time.”

Bowles and Jones called on the Australian government to step in and help get justice for the death of their daughters.

“As citizens of this country we expect the government to look after their people and get justice for their citizens when they go travelling,” Jones said.

“We can’t get into the country. There’s nothing more we can do. We need the government to do something because we are out of options,” Bowles added.

The Australian prime minister said the federal government would do everything it could to support the families of Bowles and Jones.

“The foreign minister has made it clear to her counterpart in Laos that Australia expects full accountability and the charges should reflect the devastating seriousness of this incident. We will continue to engage Laos authorities on these cases,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said during question time in a daily parliamentary session with members of Parliament on Monday.

In November 2024, Canada issued a travel advisory after the six tourists, mostly aged 19 to 20, died from methanol poisoning in the popular backpacker town in northern Laos.

“Several foreigners in Vang Vieng have been victims of suspected methanol-adulterated alcohol poisoning,” the warning read. “Be vigilant if you choose to drink alcohol. Avoid accepting free or extremely low-priced drinks. Only buy alcohol in sealed bottles and cans from reputable shops. Seek medical assistance if you begin to feel sick.”

Methanol is a clear, colourless alcohol used in all kinds of everyday products like industrial cleaners, solvents, paint, cosmetics and anti-freeze. Methanol is toxic and deadly when consumed.

Methanol is sometimes added to mixed drinks at disreputable bars as a cheaper alternative to ethanol, but can cause severe poisoning or death. It is also a byproduct of poorly distilled homebrew liquor and could have found its way into bar drinks inadvertently.

— With files from The Associated Press

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.