Police in Norway have opened an investigation into a high-profile diplomat and her husband over their links to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Mona Juul resigned as ambassador to Jordan and Iraq on Sunday, days after she was suspended following Norwegian media reports that each of her children would receive $5 million in a will allegedly signed by Epstein just days before his demise.
Emails revealed in the Epstein files also indicate that Juul's husband, Terje Rød-Larsen, had dinner with Epstein in Paris in June 2019, mere weeks before Epstein's arrest in the United States on sex trafficking charges.
Juul's lawyer has stated that she does not recognize the accusations mentioned against her, while Rød-Larsen's legal counsel expressed confidence the ongoing investigation would show there is no basis for any criminal liability.
Norway's foreign ministry remarked that Juul's contact with Epstein indicated a serious lapse in judgment, leading the Norwegian economic crime unit Økokrim to launch an inquiry into potential aggravated corruption.
The investigation will explore whether any benefits were received by Juul in connection with her position, as a property in Oslo has already been searched as part of this inquiry.
Both Juul and Rød-Larsen were instrumental in brokering the 1993-1995 Oslo Accords, which were pivotal in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The fallout from the Epstein scandal has reached numerous notable figures in Norway, with Juul now among them, joining individuals like Crown Princess Mette-Marit and former Prime Minister Thorbjørn Jagland in the scrutiny surrounding their associations with the disgraced financier.
