The son of prominent Norwegian diplomats who had come under intense public scrutiny following the release of documents linked to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in Oslo on Wednesday, according to statements released by his parents’ lawyers.
In a statement first sent to the Norwegian newspaper VG, attorneys for Terje Rød‑Larsen and Mona Juul confirmed that the couple had lost Edward Rød‑Larsen, 25, and said he took his own life. The lawyers urged the public and media to avoid speculation, warning that months of aggressive scrutiny had placed an overwhelming burden not only on the parents but also on their children.
“Speculating on connections is both irresponsible and undignified,” lawyers Thomas Skjelbred and John Christian Elden wrote in a statement shared with Newsweek via email. “Suicide is always complex. There is never one explanation, never one cause, never one blame.”
Mounting Public Scrutiny
The lawyers said the tragedy unfolded after what they described as a prolonged and increasingly unrestrained public spotlight, which they argued had shifted from legitimate scrutiny into suspicion and conjecture. They said the attention had drawn the couple’s children “involuntarily into the relentless machinery of the public,” compounding the strain on the entire family.
Juul and Rød‑Larsen are well‑known figures in Norwegian and international diplomacy, having played central roles in foreign policy for more than three decades. Both were involved in Norway’s contribution to the Israel‑Palestine peace process in the 1990s, a diplomatic effort that brought them international recognition. Rød‑Larsen later served as a government minister and held senior positions at the United Nations, while Juul held several ambassadorial posts and led Norway’s delegation to the UN.
Investigation Linked to Epstein Documents
Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender, was found dead in a cell at New York’s Metropolitan Correctional Center in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide. Epstein maintained social and professional connections with numerous high‑profile figures, including President Donald Trump and former President Bill Clinton. Neither has been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, and Trump has said his relationship with him ended years before Epstein’s death.
Last year, Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, directing the U.S. Department of Justice to release its investigative records related to Epstein.
Since February, Norway’s National Authority for Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime, known as Økokrim, has been investigating Juul and Rød‑Larsen for possible corruption following the release of Epstein‑related documents. Both have denied any criminal wrongdoing.
Documents linked to the Epstein investigation show Rød‑Larsen photographed holding a mobile phone displaying a social media image of a woman in a bikini. The records also indicate that the couple visited Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Little Saint James, with their children in 2011, when their son and his twin sister were about 10 years old. In a subsequent email cited in the files, Rød‑Larsen thanked Epstein for the invitation, describing the island as “totally unique” and adding, “We all loved it!” He also wrote, “Mona sends a kiss.”
Rød‑Larsen is reported to have been the Norwegian national with the closest personal contact with Epstein, maintaining regular communication with him from 2010 until shortly before Epstein’s arrest in 2019. Authorities are examining whether gifts, services, or financial support provided to Rød‑Larsen by Epstein could constitute bribes under Norwegian law.
As part of its inquiry, Økokrim is also reviewing whether any gifts or favors extended to the couple’s two children may fall within the scope of the investigation. Lawyers for Juul and Rød‑Larsen have emphasized that the children have never been accused of wrongdoing or identified as suspects.
Public attention intensified earlier this year after reports that Epstein’s will included a bequest of approximately $10 million to the couple’s children. The family has said the money was never received and that they learned of the bequest through media coverage.
Additional scrutiny followed the release of a 2017 email from Epstein to himself and one of his former assistants, Lesley Groff, which included biographical information about the couple’s son, Edward Rød‑Larsen. The message outlined his upbringing in Israel and the United States, his schooling in New York and the United Kingdom, and plans for work experience during his education.
In 2018, Edward emailed Epstein thanking him for an opportunity to complete work experience at Christie’s auction house, writing, “I won’t mess up this time!” Later that year, Epstein sent Edward a birthday message. Other exchanges between the two discussed work placements and periods when Edward was absent.
Terje Rød‑Larsen was named in more than 3,100 documents released by the U.S. Justice Department in connection with the Epstein files.
Juul resigned as Norway’s ambassador to Jordan and Iraq in February amid fallout from the investigation. Rød‑Larsen, a former president of the International Peace Institute, has also been accused of gross corruption. Both have denied all allegations.
Lawyers Appeal for Restraint
In early February, Elden publicly called for restraint in coverage of the case, saying both the investigation and the attention surrounding it had placed an unfair burden on the couple’s children.
“The children in particular have been put under a strain they have neither been a part of nor deserved,” he said at the time, urging journalists to show sobriety and consideration in their reporting.
The lawyers reiterated that appeal on Thursday, describing the past months as “extremely demanding” for both the son and the entire family. They argued that while scrutiny of people in power is necessary in a democracy, there is a point at which scrutiny becomes harmful.
“When people’s life’s work is reduced to headlines and innuendo, when nuances disappear and everything is read in the worst possible light, then we are no longer dealing with control,” they wrote. “Then it is a form of public punishment, without legal certainty and without limits.”
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text “988” to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.
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