Halden: – Sven Erik (42) killed

It was 42-year-old Sven Erik Næss who was found dead in Halden on Saturday evening, the East police district said on Tuesday afternoon.

– The next of kin have been informed that the name has been shared, the police said.

Hans Henrik Pettersen has been appointed as legal counsel for Næss’ parents. He currently has no comment on the matter to Dagbladet.

A 31-year-old man has been arrested and charged with killing Næss. He has linked himself to the act in police questioning, but denies criminal guilt.

On Monday, he was remanded in custody for four weeks.

The accused 31-year-old is a foreign citizen, but has lived in Norway for several years. He has not previously been convicted in this country, according to Dagbladet’s information.

Were neighbors

The accused was himself at the scene when the police arrived following reports of a house disturbance at 10.30pm on Saturday evening. The accused was admitted to hospital with minor injuries, but was discharged after a short time and arrested.

The accused and the deceased were neighbours, but beyond that there should be no relationship between them, Dagbladet is told.

The police did not wish to comment on this information.

– We have no information to go out with now about the course of events, as the witness is still to be questioned. It also applies to the relationship between the accused and the deceased, which we cannot comment on further, said police attorney Nina Marthinsen to Dagbladet on Monday afternoon.

Defender: Chance meeting

According to the 31-year-old’s defender, lawyer Tor Magnus Fagermo, his client ended up in the apartment in question by chance, when he was originally going to visit someone else in the same building.

An argument then allegedly arose which escalated into a scuffle, the defender has further stated.