A man who sent Norwegian princess Ingrid Alexandra a card “asking for friendship” was taken into police custody after an altercation with a photographer moments after being banned from contacting the 22-year-old heir to the throne.
David James Cooke, 63, was on Wednesday also barred from entering the University of Sydney – where the princess lives and studies – for two years after police successfully applied for an apprehended personal violence order on her behalf.
Police sought the order after Cooke, of Glebe, sent Ingrid Alexandra what he described as a card suggesting some events the princess might be interested in, having earlier met her at an event.
“It wasn’t threatening in any way,” Cooke said outside Newtown Local Court on Wednesday, adding that he thought the princess was a nice person and that he hadn’t intended to upset her.
Cooke, who tried to shield his face from cameras with a bag, said he had apologised to the princess through a third party. He has not been charged with any criminal offence.
Officers escorted the 63-year-old into Newtown police station after an altercation with a photographer he had collided with. Cooke is expected to be charged over the incident.
The two-year protection order prohibits Cooke from contacting Ingrid Alexandra or anyone she is in a domestic relationship with. He cannot contact the 22-year-old in any way, including via letter.
Ingrid Alexandra, who is second in line to Norway’s throne, this week returned home to be with her mother Crown Princess Mette-Marit, amid her worsening medical condition.
The court hearing in Sydney comes amid several ongoing sagas gripping the Norwegian royal family.
Ingrid Alexandra’s half brother, Prince Marius Borg Høiby, this year stood trial accused of rape and physical abuse against four women. He denies these charges, but has admitted to drug use and violence. The three judges who presided over the trial are expected to deliver their verdict in June.
Her mother, meanwhile, has faced her own scandal. Friendly email exchanges between Mette-Marit and Jeffrey Epstein were revealed in documents released by the US Department of Justice this year.
Ingrid Alexandra is expected to return to Sydney to complete her studies in international relations and political economy and continue living on-campus at St Andrew’s College. The princess last month made her first official public appearance since moving to Australia last year.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
