A well-known judge in the Supreme Court claims he was poisoned by his new Ukrainian wife

Supreme Court judge Jens Edvin A. Skoghøy believes the motive is financial. The Oslo police say they have opened a case.

It was Rett24 that published the sensational case on Wednesday. Skoghøy is not just anyone in the Norwegian judiciary. Since 1998, he has been a judge in the country’s highest court, with only a break of three years from 2017 to 2020.

He is considered one of the most influential lawyers in the country in recent decades. He also applied for the job of supreme leader of the Supreme Court, justice, in 2015. Aftenposten has spoken to Skoghøy. He does not wish to comment on the case beyond what he has told Rett24.

On 18 October, the 67-year-old was admitted to the emergency department at Ullevål University Hospital after feeling unwell, he tells Rett24.

– The blood test showed traces of an anesthetic. You don’t know exactly which, it takes a few months to analyse. But I have not taken any kind of painkillers since a traffic accident in 2001, says Skoghøy.

– My spouse was behind

He says there was only one explanation. That the substance had been supplied from outside.

– The head doctor said that it was natural to think that this might happen at home, and therefore he did not want me to go home. I then made a summary of the evidence myself together with my children. The conclusion was that it was my spouse who was behind it, says Skoghøy in the interview.

In February 2020, he married a woman from Ukraine. This was just before Skoghøy became a judge in the Supreme Court for the second time.

He says in the interview that he confronted his wife with his suspicion that she was behind it. That she tried to poison him.

– A few days later, the neighbor says that a car with a trailer had arrived and collected all her things. I have not come into contact with her since, says Skoghøy to Rett24.

The police in Oslo confirmed to Rett24 on Thursday morning that they have started a so-called investigative case to assess whether they should open a criminal case.

No one has been held as a suspect or charged so far.

No suspects or charges

– The police were contacted by the victim’s family on 24 October 2022 on the basis of a concern in connection with a hospitalisation. The police opened an investigation case and have carried out several investigations to assess whether a criminal case should be opened, police inspector Per Thomas Omholt told Aftenposten.

In an e-mail, the police write that so far there has been no reason to initiate an investigation based on the information that has been obtained.

“We are still gathering evidence and the situation may change. We cannot go into detail about what has been obtained and assessed, for the sake of a possible investigation,” the police state.

Ida Dahl Nilsen, head of information at the Supreme Court, says these are personal matters that Skoghøy herself is the right person to comment on. As much as he wants.

Skoghøy tells Rett24 that he has now filed for separation.

It is unclear where the spouse is now. Aftenposten has tried to get in touch with the woman both by phone and through social media, but without getting a response. Nor has Rett24 been able to get hold of the Ukrainian woman.

According to Rett24, the State Administrator has also not succeeded in contacting the woman to announce the separation.