“Trial of Gang Rape Case in Bergen: Accused Boast About Group Sex in ‘Expensive Cars'”

– It may seem as if he does not understand the seriousness of the case, says aid lawyer Hilde Cecilie Matre.

She represents the woman who is said to have been raped by three men at a party in Bergen in 2021.

The case is one of three abuse cases that come together in Hordaland district court. A total of five men sit on the dock, all from the same environment in Bergen.

An environment where expensive cars and group sex take center stage, according to the prosecutor.

Both of the first two days of the trial were interrupted because the names of those involved were spread online.

As day three started, a new photo had appeared on Instagram.

This time it was a selfie from one of the defendants, a 24-year-old who is charged with sexual intercourse with a girl under the legal age of sexual intercourse. The man allegedly carried out the assault together with two other men.

The picture causes public prosecutor Matre to react.

– When this happens, it is a mockery of what we are trying to stop. So the spread of names of my two offended clients. It just destroys, she says.

– It can also help to stretch the boundaries, when you get the impression that a defendant thinks it’s okay.

– If someone is going to have sex, the other mates would like to join

Prosecutor Benedicte Hordnes has described the defendants as a gang of boys who have group sex as a hobby.

On Wednesday, she spent a lot of time asking about the boy gang’s relationship to sex.

– We’ve had a lot of threesomes, said a 24-year-old man who is accused of the gang rape, the most serious assault in the case.

During the third day in court, both the second and third defendants pleaded guilty.

The prosecutor spent much of the day reading out what the 24- and 26-year-olds have said in questioning after the incident.

– It is somewhat in their nature that if someone is going to have sex, the other mates would like to join in, read the prosecutor.

A lot of attention among young people

The case receives a lot of attention in Bergen. Especially among young people.

There are a number of young people following the trial from another courtroom in the building.

A large part of the audience appears to be acquaintances of the accused men.

Several of the accused men seem to be in a good mood when the court is not set.

It also appears that the defendants follow what is posted about the case on social media.

– Not forced

The three men gave relatively similar explanations in court. The explanations were completely different from the victim’s.

All were taken by the prosecutor to say different things in court than what they said in questioning two days after the incident.

– I was very stressed during that interrogation, said the 24-year-old.

The prosecutor then asked the 24-year-old if they say something different in court to adapt to each other’s explanations.

This he denied.

The accused 24-year-old is said to have said in questioning that the boy gang has a lot of threesomes.

The defendant claims in court that he joined the room because of an impression he had.

– I figure if they didn’t want me there, I would have read it on them. There was no rejection when I followed,” he said.

When the prosecutor asked what indicated that the victim wanted to have sex with several people, he replied:

– It seemed like there was a mood for it. She said “tie me, tie me”.

The prosecutor continued to dig into what happened in the bedroom, also during the explanation of the accused 26-year-old.

She specifically asked why his explanation is so different from the victim’s.

– It is not entirely true that this is rape. She has done these things, but she has not been forced to.

Towards the end of the court day, the offended woman’s psychologist was also called as a witness. Here, closed doors were requested.

Young girls

The age of the girls with whom the men both socialize and have sex also became a topic.

The prosecutor pointed out that many of them are around five and six years younger than the defendants. This also applied to several of the girls at the party in question.

– I don’t think it’s a child, but I can understand that it looks strange, says the 24-year-old defendant.

– Is there a reason why you are with such young girls?

– I have no idea that there will be such young girls. I had no control over how old they were.

– You were the one who had the party, said the prosecutor.

– Anyone could be there, he replied.