Einar Olav Christiansen Dønnum (19 April 1897 – 22 April 1947) was a Norwegian Nazi collaborator who was executed during the

legal purge in Norway after World War II The legal purge in Norway after World War II (; ) took place between May 1945 and August 1948 against anyone who was found to have Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborated with the German occupation of Norway, German occupat ...

Early life

Before the war, Einar was a manager and Sunday school teacher at a church. He worked there for 8 years before being forced to quit. Einar had been unfaithful to his wife and initiated a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl. itation neededOutside the church he ran a scrap shop, buying and selling used clothes. When the Nazi occupied Norway, Einar became a member of

Nasjonal Samling The Nasjonal Samling (, NS; ) was a Norway, Norwegian far-right politics, far-right political party active from 1933 to 1945. It was the only legal party of Norway from 1942 to 1945. It was founded by former minister of defence Vidkun Quisling a ...

on November 1, 1940. After a few weeks at the Order Police in Oslo, Einar came to the surveillance department, a unit that was a kind of forerunner of the State Police.

World War II

During the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

, Einar became a member of

on November 1, 1940. The following year, he began as a temporary police constable. Einar joined the Statspolitiet in 1941. Einar was known for brutal interrogation methods, which included

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...

. He hired his teenage son, Ole Bernhard Dønnum, as an assistant. In addition to torturing resistance fighters, Einar also participated in several executions of them. Members of the Norwegian resistance movement, including Asbjørn Sunde, made several failed assassination attempts on Einar. Near the end of the war, Einar's name became synonymous with torture. In May 1945, Einar fled with his son to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. They were both arrested there, and extradited to Norway in July 1945. The two were tried for treason. Einar faced underlying charges of assault, torture, and murder, but Ole only faced underlying charges of torture. During his trial, Einar tried to portray himself as an insignificant figure who had not done anything particularly serious. Both Dønnums were found guilty. Einar was sentenced to death and Ole was sentenced to six years in prison with hard labour. Einar was executed by

firing squad Firing may refer to: * Dismissal (employment), sudden loss of employment by termination * Firemaking, the act of starting a fire * Burning; see combustion * Shooting, specifically the discharge of firearms * Execution by firing squad, a method of ...

at Akershus Fortress on 22 April 1947. Ole Dønnum was released from prison on 18 December 1948, and changed his name after his release.Side 309/310. Eirik Veum: ''Nådeløse Nordmenn. Statspolitiet 1941 - 1945''. Kagge Forlag 2012 ISBN 978-82-489-1174-6

References

1897 births 1947 deaths Norwegian police officers convicted of murder Norwegian people convicted of war crimes Executed Norwegian collaborators with Nazi Germany {{crime-bio-stub Members of Nasjonal Samling People convicted of torture People convicted of murder by Norway Police officers convicted of assault Police officers executed for murder Police officers executed for treason Statspolitiet personnel