Northug sentenced to seven months in prison – NRK Norway – Summary of news from different parts of the country

Two hours after the ski star was explained in court, the verdict came.

Northug is serving a prison sentence for reckless driving, filming with a mobile camera while driving recklessly and storing drugs.

– Generally, the sentence is seven months in prison, said district court judge Ole Kristen Øverberg.

Northug is also deprived of his driver’s license for life.

It is a practice that a convicted person can still get their driver’s license back, but in any case it is a minimum period of five years.

Northug accepted the penalty after a brief chat with his defender.

– You want to move on

Northug wants to accept the punishment he has received and move on with his life, says defender Halvard Helle.

– Does seven months mean you have to go to prison to serve your sentence?

– I notice there is little distance between the judge’s premises and the conclusion he reaches, and that is because Northug has received a discount for confession and they have emphasized rehabilitation and police leaks. But they still land somewhat higher than I think there is a base. But Northug was fully aware that he wanted to accept the punishment he received and move on, Helle says.

He says Northug has been aware that such acts usually turn into an unconditional prison sentence of a certain length.

– The darkest day of the year was long enough for Northug when he was kidnapped in August. That was the zero point. We are now in the darkest day of the year, but in the meantime there has been a significant change in her lifestyle. This applies to intoxication as well as training and other things that help put what has been behind it, Helle says.

He says that the police leaks of the investigation have been a significant additional burden, and that the judge also emphasized this in the overall assessment.

Helle says she is awaiting the Bureau’s investigation into the leaks.

Stronger penalties for mobile videos

The judge says that the penalty before the penalty discount is eight months.

The judge believes that Northug put himself and others in danger of dying from high speed and the use of a mobile phone.

– It is aggravating that several speeding crime films have been made that, according to the defendant’s own explanation, were shown to friends. This must be dealt with harshly, the judge said, adding that the defendant has been convicted of similar crimes in the past.

The judge thought that driving showed that Northug had not learned from the earlier verdict.

Police thought Northug should be sentenced to eight months in prison, while Northug’s defender, Halvard Helle, thought the sentence should be less than six months. It would open up to zoning with an anklet instead of a physical prison.

The limit to be able to have an anklet instead of having to spend time in prison is six months.

In other words, the seven-month sentence means Northug cannot serve time with an anklet.

Northug: – It shouldn’t happen

Northug has already admitted what he is charged with and the case was treated as a confession case.

Northug, who is charged with driving under the influence and storing drugs, posed for a video link at the court hearing. From what NRK understands, it’s in Trøndelag.

Shortly before 12 noon, Northug joined the video link. He wears a black sweater and had a cup of coffee before the court was set up in room 250 of the Oslo District Court.

The judge started with rough driving.

– It was filmed with the cell phone in my right hand and I had one hand on the wheel, says Petter Northug.

– This incident where I should have completely slowed down and accelerated to a speed of 204 km / h in a zone of 80. Okay? asked the judge.

“That’s right,” Northug said.

When it comes to rough driving, the charge is based on Northug’s own mobile recordings.

– Do you know that you can’t use a mobile phone like this when you drive? asked the judge.

– Yes. It’s negligent and it shouldn’t happen in traffic, Northug replied.

The pressure of filming

Northug mostly responded briefly to questions, but sometimes had to elaborate before the judge was satisfied.

The judge says he can hear Northug’s voice on the mobile video. Northug would rather not say anything about it, but the judge asked him to explain.

– I comment on my driving, while passing. I don’t need to delve into that, Northug said.

– Do I know you are talking about humiliating those who pass by? said the judge.

“I’m saying I’m going to pass them on and I’ll do it with a kind of commentator voice,” Northug replied.

Northug also confirms that he has shown the films to friends.

Various cases of rough driving

According to the indictment, he drove too fast four times, on three different days:

• On Monday, August 10, on the E6 in Spain, he was driving at a speed of 203 kilometers per hour when the speed limit was 80 kilometers per hour.
• On Wednesday August 12 between Elverum and Trysil, he drove at a speed of 204 kilometers in the zone of the 80.
• On Thursday August 13 between Trysil and Elverum, he drove several times at more than 200 kilometers per hour in zone 80, of which the maximum speed was 221 kilometers per hour.
• On Thursday 13th August on the E6 Daldumpa in Ullensaker, he drove 168 km / h in zone 80.

Drove in the opposite lane

According to the indictment, he used a mobile phone while driving, filming the speedometer and the road.

“He also drove several times in the opposite lane while constantly filming and commenting on his own driving. The described driving was a great danger for him and the other road users, ”the indictment states.

Stored drugs

The ski star is accused of several drug driving and storage cases.

In addition to 6 grams of cocaine and 0.6 grams of MDMA, he is said to have kept three tablets containing the narcotic Diazepam and two tablets containing the narcotic Alprazolam.

When Northug met with the press in August, the ski legend said he had a substance abuse problem.

Northug was also charged for the first time with driving under the influence of drugs. On September 2, however, it became clear that Northug’s blood sample had no traces of drugs.

Thus, the part of the accusation for driving under the influence of drugs was withdrawn.

Northug says police are detaining him at his home from Trysil. An interrogation was carried out where he was arrested, a saliva sample was taken on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs.

– It was my drug, said Northug, who confirms that the amount of MDMA and cocaine is correct and that it was found in his apartment.

He says he stays sober

Asked by the defense attorney, Northug said he had remained drug free after the incidents.

– You have also taken urine samples regularly from your GP. It’s okay? asks attorney Halvard Helle.

– That’s right, says Northug.

– Is it true that they are clean and that you have managed to stay away from the use of tablets and medications?

“That’s right,” Northug replied.

When defense attorney Helle asked for a lower sentence than the police were asking for, he argued that Northug is in “a positive development.”

Helle also believes that a police leak on the case that contributed to the pressure from the media should be seen as a mitigation of punishment.

After the judge reviewed all the circumstances, Northug was asked if he agreed with a confession verdict.

– That’s right, says Northug.

When the hearing ended, Northug was asked if there was anything he wanted to add.

– No, he answered briefly.

After the turbulent fall, Northug has also released a holiday song that has received some attention.