The short version
- Viggo Kristiansen testifies against his former comrade Jan Helge Andersen in the trial about the murders in Baneheia
- Kristiansen was acquitted in December 2022 and describes the police interrogations as “speaking to deaf ears”.
- The mobile evidence has been central to Kristiansen’s acquittal
- State prosecutor Johan Øverberg asks about the time and how Andersen behaved before the arrest
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Viggo Kristiansen was finally acquitted of the murders in Baneheia on 15 December 2022.
Now witnesses To testify means to give an explanation or tell about what you have seen, heard or experienced, often in a court case.he against his former comrade, Jan Helge Andersen.
Kristiansen is wearing a blue jumper and blue trousers. So does Jan Helge Andersen, who sits on his left.
Andersen pleads not guilty to the murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen (10).
Today, the court was also set before Kristiansen came in.
Public prosecutor A public prosecutor who represents the state in a court case, and who is responsible for prosecuting the case against the defendant.Johan Øverberg starts right where he left off yesterday, on the day of the murder, 19 May. He repeats what Kristiansen has previously said in questioning.
Public prosecutor
The public prosecutor asks how he remembers this day, and about the time Kristiansen has previously given for when Andersen came to him that evening.
– It was a completely normal day. You don’t sit around and fuss over details then, replies Kristiansen.
Kristiansen has a forward-leaning attitude in the witness box, and sits facing the state attorney.
Then the public prosecutor moves on to the police questioning, and what the questioning was like. He is asked how he experienced the interrogations after he stayed arrested: Being caught by the police and held in custody, often because you are suspected of having done something illegal.
– Like talking to deaf ears, replies Kristiansen.
He further says that he felt the police pushed him hard, and that unfortunately it took 21 years to reveal the truth.
You can follow VG’s live coverage of the trial and ask questions to Krimpodden here.
While Kristiansen is testifying, his former comrade mostly looks down at the desk. He fiddles a bit with a pen, and keeps his eyes on the public prosecutor and not Kristiansen. In between, while Kristiansen is talking, he quickly glances over at his former friend.
VG’s podcast Krimpodden follows the trial closely. You can hear their reflections on Kristiansen’s first day in the witness box via VG+ or on Podme.
State Attorney Øverberg asks Kristiansen what he thought when it became clear that Andersen had confessed to the crimes in Baneheia.
– At first I didn’t think so. Then it was presented that there was evidence against him, and it just became more and more eternal chaos, says Kristiansen.
Assistance lawyerA lawyer who represents the interests of victims in a criminal case. Audun Beckstrøm breaks in at one point and asks the public prosecutor to ask more open questions than he does now.
There is a bit of back and forth, and the judge ends up asking the question, which is whether Andersen used to carry a knife.
– No, I don’t know if he had a knife at all, replies Kristiansen.
The mobile certificate
Øverberg is also today concerned with Kristiansen’s mobile phone and mobile use.
The mobile evidence has been central to both the trials and the acquittal of Kristiansen.
On the day the murders took place, Kristiansen sent two text messages, one at 6.57pm and 7.37pm. At 19.24 he received a message.
The base stationA device that communicates with mobile phones and sends signals between the phone and the phone network. which the phone communicated with on the night of the murder did not then cover the area in Baneheia where the girls were killed.
The public prosecutor then asks questions about the time after the murders and before the two were arrested. The murders took place in May, while Andersen and Kristiansen were not arrested until September.
He brings up a trip to Denmark that the two friends went on that summer.
He asks how Andersen was on this trip:
– Completely normal as he always was, replies Kristiansen.
The Baneheia case explained
On Tuesday he said he did not feel he was a leader in their relationship.
His lawyer, Brynjar Meling, has said that this may be the last time Kristiansen takes the witness stand:
Kristiansand city court sentenced Viggo Kristiansen to prison for 21 years detention A type of punishment where you are kept in prison until you are no longer considered dangerous.for, among other things, the rape and murder of the two girls. Jan Helge Andersen was sentenced to 17 years in prison, and acquitted of the murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen.
Viggo Kristiansen and Jan Helge Andersen both appealed the verdict. Kristiansen because he pleaded not guilty, while Andersen appealed the sentencing. The Court of Appeal upheld the verdict against Kristiansen, and gave Andersen a two-year longer sentence. They both appealed to the Supreme Court. Kristiansen’s case was not processed, while Andersen’s was rejected. The sentence of 19 years’ imprisonment was upheld.
Kristiansen maintained his innocence throughout and petitioned for the case to be reopened several times. On 18 February 2021, the Re-admission Commission decided that the case should be looked at again. Kristiansen was released from Ila prison on 1 June 2021, after 21 years behind bars.
It is decided that the Oslo police district will carry out the new investigation. Andersen is charged in the new Baneheia investigation, for the murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen (10), for which he had previously been acquitted.
Attorney General Jørn Sigurd Maurud apologized most strongly to Viggo Kristiansen when he presented the Attorney General’s recommendation to the Borgarting Court of Appeal in October 2022. The result of the new investigation was that Kristiansen must be acquitted. On 15 December, an acquittal was handed down in the Borgarting Court of Appeal. Viggo Kristiansen was thus innocently convicted of the murders in Baneheia.
On 12 January 2024, the Attorney General requested that charges be brought against Jan Helge Andersen for the murder of Lena Sløgedal Paulsen (10). On 16 March 2024, the trial against him begins in Sør-Rogaland district court.
Tags: Viggo Kristiansen witness #box
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