Norway's central economic and environmental crime-fighting unit, Okokrim, searched the home of former Norwegian Prime Minister Thorbjorn Jagland on Thursday, raiding two additional properties as part of a corruption investigation triggered by the release of the Epstein files.

Jagland, 75, is suspected of "aggravated corruption," according to Okokrim chief Pal Lonseth. Investigators swept through the former prime minister's Oslo residence and properties in the towns of Risør and Rauland — three locations in total.

According to the Daily Caller, the searches became possible only after the Council of Europe lifted Jagland's immunity on Wednesday. He formerly served as the body's Secretary-General.

The Emails That Started It

The investigation traces back to Department of Justice-released emails detailing communications between Jagland and Jeffrey Epstein. The exchanges paint a picture of a senior European statesman coordinating personal travel through one of the most notorious figures in modern criminal history.

In February 2014, Jagland emailed Epstein directly: "How can we proceed with the tickets for easter?"

Epstein responded by requesting "names and passport numbers." By March, an unnamed individual emailed Jagland confirming logistics:

"I will be helping you with your trip to Palm Beach and on to Jeffrey's island."

An April 2014 email thread referenced an individual named "Jermaine" who would pick up Jagland and his family. The correspondence reads less like a distant acquaintance and more like a well-worn travel routine — passport numbers exchanged, handlers assigned, family included.

Okokrim announced the investigation on Feb. 5, stating in a press release that there were sufficient grounds to look into his family’s trips to Epstein’s island because of the roles Jagland held at the time.

The agency specified it will investigate "whether gifts, travel and loans were received in connection with his position." That framing matters. This isn't merely about a former politician's poor taste in vacation companions. It's about whether Epstein's hospitality was the price — or the payment — for access to someone who chaired the Norwegian Nobel Committee and led the Council of Europe.

A Widening Net

Jagland isn't the only Norwegian figure caught in the fallout. On Monday, Okokrim opened a separate investigation into Mona Juul, Norway's former ambassador to Iraq, and her husband Terje Rod-Larsen. Lonseth stated that the investigation was opened "to determine whether any criminal conduct has taken place" and warned it would be "comprehensive" and "long-lasting."

Three investigations. Three connected figures. All flowing from the same tranche of Epstein documents that American officials finally released.

What the Epstein Files Keep Revealing

For years, the political and media establishment treated the Epstein saga as a closed chapter — a dead man's crimes, conveniently sealed. The persistent refusal to release associated files became one of the defining trust gaps between ordinary citizens and their institutions. People could see the outlines of the story. They just weren't allowed to read it.

Now that the documents are out, the consequences are landing not in Manhattan or Miami but in Oslo. A former prime minister's home, raided. A former ambassador, under investigation. The Council of Europe, forced to strip one of its own of immunity so prosecutors could do their jobs.

This is what accountability looks like when the paper trail finally surfaces. Jagland wasn't some peripheral name in a contact list. The emails show him personally arranging Easter travel for his family to Epstein's island, corresponding directly with a man whose criminal enterprise was an open secret among the global elite long before his arrest.

The standard defense in Epstein-adjacent cases has always been plausible ignorance — "I didn't know," "I was only there briefly," "many people visited." Those arguments collapse under the weight of direct email correspondence requesting passport numbers and confirming island itineraries. You don't accidentally plan a family vacation to a private island through a convicted predator's personal logistics operation.

The Immunity Question

The Council of Europe's decision to lift Jagland's immunity deserves its own scrutiny. The fact that it was necessary at all — that a former head of an international body enjoyed a shield from criminal investigation — illustrates the architecture of insulation these institutions provide. Immunity exists to protect officials from politically motivated prosecution. It should never function as a barrier to investigating whether someone traded public authority for private luxury.

The Council acted on Wednesday. The raids came Thursday. Norwegian prosecutors moved fast once the obstacle cleared, which suggests the evidentiary foundation was already built and waiting.

What Comes Next

No formal charges have been filed. The investigations remain in early stages, and Lonseth's warning that the process would be "long-lasting" signals this will unfold over months, possibly years. But the trajectory is unmistakable. Okokrim isn't conducting raids across three properties on a hunch.

The Epstein files have barely begun to produce their full consequences. If a former Norwegian prime minister's home can be searched based on what these documents contain, the question isn't whether more names will surface. It's how many governments will have to answer for what their leaders did when they thought no one would ever read the receipts.