Former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland has been admitted to hospital due to “stress caused by the Epstein scandal“, Norwegian news agency NTB and other local media reported, citing a statement from his lawyer.
Jagland is one of the most prominent figures involved in the scandal that emerged after the publication of documents about the late American financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Norwegian authorities are investigating allegations of serious corruption.
The former senior Norwegian politician visited Epstein's apartments in Paris and New York and stayed at his Palm Beach estate Beach, in the US state of Florida, while he was secretary general of the Council of Europe, the leading human rights organization.
The American multimillionaire Epstein, who died in prison in 2019, ran a sex abuse ring for years with an as-yet-unknown number of victims, some of whom were minors.
Jagland's lawyer said his client was cooperating with investigators but did not believe there were grounds for criminal prosecution.
Officers from the Norwegian Economic Crimes Office searched Jagland's homes.
After serving as prime minister of Norway from 1996 to 1997, Thorbjørn Jagland headed the Council of Europe from 2009 to 2019 and was chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee for many years old.
At Norway's request, the Council of Europe recently lifted Jagland's immunity for the 10 years he served as head of the organization.
British police said a search of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's former home in southeast England had ended after the former prince was arrested last week on suspicion of abuse of power, Reuters reported.
Mountbatten-Windsor's arrest on Thursday was in connection with a police investigation into his relationship with the late American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
„Officers left the scene, which "We were searching in Berkshire. This concludes the search which began after the arrest of a man in his 60s from Norfolk on Thursday," Thames Valley Police Deputy Chief Constable Oliver Wright said in a statement.
According to documents from Epstein's files released by the US Department of Justice last month, King Charles' younger brother appears to have sent confidential government documents to the convicted financier while working as a trade envoy.
Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and says he regrets their friendship.