It became clear when Økokrim concluded its procedure on Thursday. – As a starting point, this qualifies for prison for something over four years, prosecutor Marthe Stømner Smestad in Økokrim said in court and continued: – Then we have taken particular account of what we have visited. His fixed and long-term intention of corruption over twelve years. And even if the value of some benefits is not great or it is difficult to put a value on the example of receiving benefits in the form of spending time with women, says the prosecutor in court. – So these violations, when they form part of a pattern like here, are to be considered gross overall, said Stømner Smestad. Økokrim will fine Besseberg one million kroner. They believe this can result in a six-month sentence reduction. – So all in all, the prosecution believes that the correct sentencing will be three years and seven months in prison, said the prosecutor. The claim to Økokrim thus ended in: Three years and seven months in prison. Fine of NOK one million NOK 1.45 million in value confiscation She pointed out this about the size of the fine for Besseberg: – The defendant has considerable liquid assets. so a fine of the order of magnitude we propose, It will make a noticeable dent in his finances. But it will be unproblematic to pay, said the prosecutor. She emphasized that there may be mitigating circumstances. But she pointed out that there are strong general preventive considerations for this. – I cannot see that there is a reason for a sentence reduction in this case, said the prosecutor. She also stressed that the fine should not replace a significant part of the prison sentence. Court drawing by Besseberg. He did not want to be photographed in court. Photo: Ane Hem Later today, the defense will also hold its proceedings in the trial against Anders Besseberg. Gross corruption Besseberg is accused of gross corruption while he was president of the International Biathlon Union. But he pleads not guilty after the indictment. Among other things, they also want confiscation of: Økokrim also submits a claim for confiscation of the value of hunting trips in several countries and the leasing car a marketing company paid for Besseberg. They believed, among other things, that the hunting trips in Russia had a value of NOK 108,000. The latter had a total value of NOK 850,000 according to the indictment. This amounts to a total of NOK 1.45 million. – The level of punishment for corruption is generally high, and that is precisely because corruption often affects more people than those directly involved in the actions. It poses a threat to the rule of law and democracy and social justice, Stømner Smestad said in court. There she explained why Besseberg should be punished and what the legal practice is. – If Besseberg is convicted, he faces a sentence of 3-4 years in prison, statistically speaking, stated BI researcher Petter Gottschalk in an e-mail to news earlier during the trial. He researches economic crime and refers to the outcome of corruption cases in Norwegian courtrooms. He also points out that those who are bribed are punished more severely in Norway than those who bribe. In Norway, serious corruption carries a penalty of up to ten years in prison. – But there will never be such long sentences, Gottschalk pointed out. NOK 1.7 million Økokrim pointed out that the benefits Besseberg has received have been accepted over a very long period of time, a total of 13 years. – Altogether, if you calculate annual hunting trips, if you assume that the car was received on only two occasions, then we have 32 occasions of exchange of benefits. And values for at least NOK 1.7 million, says Stømner Smestad. Among other things, it was pointed out how important his position is in this matter. – Considerable economic value is important, and the risk of significant damage of a financial or other nature, said Stømner Smestad. She pointed out that it should not necessarily be judged as harshly as for people within public administration. – But still so that, for general preventive reasons, corruption in such positions of trust in a large organization should be viewed particularly strictly. Co-prosecutor Marte Stømner Smestad in Økokrim Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB Besseberg is accused of having accepted goods and services in the form of expensive watches, a leasing car, exclusive hunting trips and prostitutes from Russians and a company (Infront) that negotiated marketing agreements for Det International Biathlon Union. The trial against Anders Besseberg, which ends this week, is in its sixth week. Illuminated a number of points In the procedure, which started yesterday, Økokrim went into detail about why Besseberg should be punished. Among other things, this has been highlighted in court today: Lack of transparency about the benefits in the indictment. That Besseberg himself also realized that a watch was about lubrication. That Besseberg has not returned gifts he knew the value of. That the court can safely rely on admissions about prostitutes in police interviews. That he got benefits because he was president. That he himself was aware of what could be conflicts of interest. – It is a main conclusion that the objective as well as the subjective conditions have been met for all the points in the indictment, said prosecutor Marianne Djupesland in court. Photo: Ane Hem In court, Økokrim also pointed out that a number of the conditions for which Besseberg is being prosecuted are required, received or accepted in Norway. The leased car in the indictment, which was paid for by market giant Infront, has been received in Norway. Watches have been received or kept in Norway. The premeditated hunt with Volker Schmid, who is central to the indictment, has been agreed and accepted in Norway on Besseberg’s part. That also being together with a woman they believe offers sexual services is agreed upon in Norway. Anders Besseberg has here received a gift, which turned out to be an Omega watch worth NOK 195,000, in 2011. He received the watch that is part of the indictment from the Russian biathlon champion Sergej Kustchenko (in the middle). The Russian is also connected to the indictment on prostitutes. Photo: Nordic Focus – There has been no transparency about this. The ties to the Russian Federation and Infront have largely been hidden ties, Djupesland said. Djupesland pointed out in his procedure that Besseberg as president was thus in a constant state of disqualification, and that this applied both to the Russian association and Infront. She pointed out that one is then in the middle of the core area for what the corruption provision is intended to cover, the risk of, and the possibility of, external influence and improper exercise of authority.
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Økokrim asks for more than three years in prison and a million fine for Besseberg – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
