Norwegian footballer Andreas Schjelderup receives suspended sentence for sharing sexual video of minors while playing for Danish club FC Nordsjaelland.
COPENHAGEN: Norwegian national team footballer Andreas Schjelderup has been convicted of sharing sexual material involving two underage boys.
The Copenhagen court found the 21-year-old guilty on Wednesday and handed him a suspended prison sentence.
Schjelderup admitted receiving a 27-second video on Snapchat and forwarding it to a group chat with four friends.
The winger, who previously played for Danish side FC Nordsjaelland, told the court he immediately recognized the individuals were under 18.
“As I forwarded it to my friends, I quickly realised that it was illegal and rapidly deleted the video,” Schjelderup said.
He currently plays for Portuguese club Benfica and had pleaded guilty to the charges.
In an Instagram statement on Saturday, Schjelderup apologised for what he called “a stupid mistake I did”.
Judge Mathias Eike imposed a two-week suspended prison sentence that will only activate if Schjelderup commits another crime within 12 months.
Prosecutors had sought at least 20 days of actual imprisonment for the offence.
Defence lawyer Anders Nemeth indicated they would consider whether to appeal the verdict.
Schjelderup was an unused substitute when Norway qualified for the 2026 World Cup with a 4-1 victory over Italy in Milan on Sunday. – Reuters
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