Norway
Kidnapped or murdered? Millionaire wife Anne-Elisabeth Hagen has disappeared without a trace for five years
This photo provided by Norwegian police shows Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen, the kidnapped wife of one of Norway’s richest men
© Police Handout/Norwegian Police/NTB Scanpix / DPA
On Halloween 2018, millionaire wife Anne-Elisabeth Hagen disappeared from her family home near Oslo. Since then there has been no trace of her. Her husband was targeted by investigators – and the police have not yet filed the case.
At this time of year it gets dark and uncomfortable again in Norway. The trees are losing their leaves, the days are getting shorter and colder. Under similar conditions, the wife of a Norwegian multimillionaire suddenly disappeared from her family home in Lørenskog near Oslo on October 31, 2018 – Anne-Elisabeth has been missing since then Hagen any trace.
It’s been five years since the millionaire’s wife disappeared this Tuesday. During this time, the police received thousands of tips. However, it is still completely unclear what exactly happened on this Halloween day half a decade ago.
What is certain is that Anne-Elisabeth Hagen disappeared during the morning that day. The police initially investigated in secret, but then went public with the case ten weeks later. The investigators reported that the 68-year-old had probably been kidnapped. A letter was found in the house with a ransom demand in the millions, to be paid in a cryptocurrency.
First twist: The changed main hypothesis
But even after months there was no sign of life from the woman – this is highly unusual in kidnappings. The police eventually changed their main hypothesis to the effect that the kidnapping was faked and that it was probably a case of homicide. The relatives still did not give up hope that the woman could still be alive. “The family hopes, but does not know, whether Anne-Elisabeth is still alive,” summed up family lawyer Svein Holden on the first anniversary of the disappearance.
Since then, the Hagen case in Norway has raised more questions than it has provided answers. Crime cases like this are usually material for Scandinavian crime novels or TV series – in fact, Netflix has already released a mini-series about the case. But in reality? The Scandinavian country with all its fjords and forests is considered a peaceful natural idyll. What is probably the most dramatic missing person case in Norwegian history hardly fits into this idyll.
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Second twist: the arrest
The case took a surprising turn in the Corona spring of 2020. A year and a half after the disappearance, the police suddenly arrested the extremely rich husband Tom Hagen – on suspicion. The police announced at a press conference at the time that he was accused of having killed his wife of many years or of having been otherwise involved in the crime – an accusation that Hagen denied through lawyer Holden. The multimillionaire was taken into custody shortly afterwards, but was released after a few days. However, the allegations against him remained.
The investor Tom Hagen was then and is still one of the richest people in Norway. The Norwegian business magazine “Kapital” lists the now 73-year-old with a fortune of around 2.6 billion crowns (220 million euros) in 166th place in its current ranking of the 400 richest people in the country. This puts him even ahead of the most famous Norwegian on the list, the soccer star Erling Haaland at number 239. Hagen became rich primarily through electricity sales and real estate. Nevertheless, he and his family lived a relatively withdrawn and modest life.
On the second anniversary of the disappearance, Tom Hagen spoke publicly about the case for the first time: In an interview with the Norwegian radio station NRK, he reported on two difficult years, great emptiness without his Lisbeth and missing her every day. He denied involvement in the crime and instead spoke of a good marriage. “But we’ve had bumps in the road like everyone else. There’s nothing to hide,” he said. The Hagens had been married for 49 years at the time of the disappearance.
Fresh look at comprehensive investigative material on Anne-Elisabeth Hagen
The responsible police district Øst does not want to comment on whether Tom Hagen is still the main suspect in the case. The main hypothesis that Anne-Elisabeth Hagen was killed still exists, said deputy police chief Lars Reinholdt-Østbye at the request of the DPA news agency. But other hypotheses continue to be worked on, including deprivation of liberty.
The Hagen case will therefore not be placed on file even five years later. “The investigation is still ongoing,” Reinholdt-Østbye assured. Even five years after the disappearance of Anne-Elisabeth Hagen, relevant investigative steps still need to be taken. Among other things, it is also about looking at the comprehensive material with a fresh perspective. “This is demanding work that takes time,” he says.