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 purge in Norway after World War II was a purge that took place between May 1945 and August 1948 against anyone who was deemed to have collaborated with the German occupation of the country. Several thousand Norwegians and foreign citizens wer ...

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. Outside the church he ran a scrap shop, buying and selling used clothes. When the Nazi occupied Norway, Einar became a member of

Nasjonal Samling Nasjonal Samling (, NS; ) was a Norwegian 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 and a group of supporters such 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 the ...

, Einar became a member of

on November 1, 1940. The following year, he began as a temporary police constable. Einar joined the

Statspolitiet (; shortened STAPO) was from 1941 to 1945 a National Socialist armed police force that consisted of Norwegian officials after Nazi German pattern. It operated independently of the ordinary Norwegian police. The force was established on 1 June 19 ...

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 such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...

. 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 The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *Asserting the legitimacy of the exiled government, ...

, including

Asbjørn Sunde Asbjørn Edvin Sunde (12 December 1909 – 23 April 1985) was a Norwegian politician for the Communist Party of Norway, communist partisan during the Spanish Civil War, saboteur against the Nazi occupation of Norway during the Second World W ...

, 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,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. 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 Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are us ...

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...

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 Executed Norwegian collaborators with Nazi Germany {{crime-bio-stub