Johannes S. Andersen
Andersen was a controversial character, because of his pre-war life as a well-known career criminal and a series of incidents that occurred during the war years.
[1] At age 10 Johannes was declared a ward of court and sent to the school institution Toftes gave on the island Helgøya in the lake Mjøsa.
When 29 boys rebelled at Bastøy in 1915, police officers and the Norwegian Armed Forces were employed to crush the riot, and the leaders taken away in handcuffs.
[8] After an upturn during the First World War, Norway's financial situation again turned for the worse, no-one would hire a man with an institutional background, and he was out of work.
[1] He made a last-ditch attempt to make money, buying liquor in Tønsberg and selling it on the black market in Kristiania, but this was not enough for his wife, who left him to pursue a more financially secure future.
They agreed to part ways when Andersen decided to pursue a trapper career in Canada; when going to visit her one last time he stumbled upon a police officer who recognized him and arrested him.
[11] Norway's prohibition from 1916 onwards opened up possibilities for a lucrative criminal career, and Andersen joined up in 1921 with old friends from his days at Toftes gave in grand-scale smuggling operations.
[12] He was then deported under police escort back to Norway on the steamship Kong Dag, but when the ship entered the Oslofjord, Andersen escaped by jumping overboard near Spro.
He gained considerable renown for his elegantly executed burglaries, being labelled by the media "gentleman-forbryter i Grünerløkka-utgave" (English: gentleman criminal, Grünerløkka edition).
[10] His criminal escapades made Andersen a national celebrity in pre-war Norway, and his nickname "Gulosten" a household name.
[18] In 1935 Andersen attempted to get a children's book published, but it was rejected because of its inclusion of a number of "brutal scenes, unsuited for youths".
[19] After yet another spell in prison, Andersen was released on 9 April 1940, the day Germany invaded Norway as a part of World War II.
His furniture workshop was used as a weapons depot by the Norwegian resistance movement, and he took part in looting German military stores.
While there he acquired false x-ray images and tuberculosis germs to fake illnesses in other captured resistance men who were on their way to interrogation.
[1][20] At night, he would sneak out of the hospital and operate in Oslo, amongst other activities breaking into Nasjonal Samling offices and stealing documents, copying them and having them shipped to the United Kingdom together with evidence of torture in Nazi-run prisons.
[21] After his return to Norway in 1942, Andersen carried out the assassination of well-known informer Raymond Colberg[22] and then made good his escape to Sweden.
This led to the arrest of eight resistance members in March 1941,[23] three of whom were executed (Øivind Ask, Andreas Bertnes and Johan Midttun were shot 4 December 1941).
[24][25] Andersen carried out the assassination of the Abwehr agent together with his wife and two acquaintances,[1] kidnapping him and killing him in the basement of the Oslo animal hospital Cheval.
[26] According to Ruth Andersen's later interrogation records, the killing was carried out by crucifying him with four knives and crushing his bones with iron pipes, then dismembering the body, putting it in a container for animal carcasses and dumping it in the river Akerselva.
[27][28] According to historian and leader of Norway's Resistance Museum, Arnfinn Moland, the claims of Colberg having been tortured and mutilated are fabrications.
[23] Andersen then fled to Sweden, and travelled on to the United Kingdom, where he was recruited by Professor Leif Tronstad for work with the British Special Operations Executive.
[3] In the United Kingdom, Andersen suggested a series of further assassinations in Oslo, naming targets and describing plans for how to carry out the killings.
[43] Andersen then joined the exiled Royal Norwegian Navy and served on a Motor Torpedo Boat (MTB) for the duration of the war.
Leading saboteur Max Manus wrote shortly after the war in his book Det vil helst gå godt: "It was one hell of a risk to send a man with Gulosten's reputation and history out on secret military missions.
[50] The Norwegian court system started working on Andersen's case, eventually reaching judge advocate Ivar Follestad.
Follestad and Horve were supported in this by Minister of Defence Jens Christian Hauge, and the decision was made final by royal resolution on 25 April 1947.
Teamfilm employee Knut Bohwim stated that the book contained enough material for three motion pictures, but that they would concentrate the story into one film at best.
